Not quite Spring yet and early Spring are my favorite times of year to live in Western Michigan. Even on beautiful weekends like the one we just had there are so many beautiful places to go and more often than not we have them all to ourselves. After three days over the last two weekends in Silver Lake (which is an absolute madhouse of people in the summer) we decided to try a new location. This weekend we travelled a bit farther, only about 50 minutes from home, and made Nordhouse Dunes our adventure spot. What a wonderful day!

Nordhouse Dunes takes a lot more work in any season, unlike Silver Lake there are no dune buggies allowed. Much more walking is needed, in fact the hike is the destination at Nordhouse. And at Nordhouse it is more our sort of folk, the ones that are out there for meditation and exercise. People like us that are attracted to the beauty no matter the season. So we did run into a few more people than Silver Lake, but not enough to warranty leashes for the most part. I was very excited to find a lovely grove of dead trees in the swamp lands. Those that know me from my fine art days know that I LOVE dead and hibernating trees. Trees are so much more interesting with their clothes off…

So, for the next few weeks I plan to make every weekend an adventure. I love the peace and quiet of Western Michigan before tourist season kicks into high gear. Tourist season has its own benefits and I find my much needed quiet there as well. Wonderful evenings spent around a campfire. Waking early in my camper and hitting the trails while the rest of the campers are still nestled deep in their sleeping bags. So many wonderful things to look forward to as the world slowly awakens from winter slumber.

As always, dogs in tow on all upcoming adventures!