Explore
Manistee and Benzie Counties are chock full of things to do, places to explore, and amazing adventures. Here are a few of our favorites!
Artesian Wells
An artesian aquifer is a confined aquifer containing groundwater under positive pressure. This type of well seems to defy gravity because the pressure that builds up between layers of rock gets relieved when the water finds a path to the open air. These popular artesian wells have been enjoyed by locals and visitors for many years.
Museums
There are many local museums, helping us to remember the origins of what we now consider to be our playground.
Sleeping Bear Dunes
| No visit to Michigan is complete without climbing the Sleeping Bear Dunes! Voted the `Most Beautiful Place in America` by Good Morning America, the area designated as National Lakeshore offers miles of coastline and beaches, hiking trails, lighthouses, and spectacular sunsets. | |
| Toll Free: | 1.888.334.8499 |
Point Betsie Lighthouse
| Point Betsie Lighthouse, Benzie County’s most famous landmark, is located on the Lake Michigan shore just south of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and about five miles north of Frankfort, Michigan. Point Betsie is one of the most photographed lighthouses in the United States, and likely the most visited attraction in Benzie County. | |
| Location: | Pt Betsie Rd, Frankfort, MI |
| Phone: | 231-352-7644 |
Orchard Beach Aviation
| Take a scenic airplane ride and view the beautiful vistas along the Lake Michigan shoreline, Portage Lake, or the City of Manistee. | |
| Location: | 2323 Airport Road Manistee, MI |
| Phone: | (231) 723-8095 |
Benzie/Manistee Snowmobile Trails
| Location: | multiple trailheads in Benzie & Manistee Counties |
Michigan Legacy Art Park & Trail
| Discover for yourself how artists bring the stories of Michigan`s past to fresh and vivid life. View these inspiring sculptures as you hike through 30-acres of wooded preserve in northern Michigan. | |
| Location: | 12500 Crystal Mountain Drive, Thompsonville, MI |
| Phone: | 231-378-4963 |
Gravity Hill
| Just past the Blaine Christian Church, at the bottom of the hill. Put the car in park and experience the unexplainable! Please use caution that you don`t go through the intersection! | |
| Location: | Just south of Putney & Joyfield Rds |
Our Saviors Historical Society
| This church was built in 1868 and is on the National Register for Historic Places. It is the oldest Danish American Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. It is typically open on weekend in the summer and you will frequently find quaint wedding ceremonies and baptisms happening in these historic walls. Inside the museum you will also find detailed photographs and historic objects about the Danish American history of Manistee County. | |
| Location: | 304 Walnut Street, Manistee, MI |
| Phone: | 231-723-5531 |
Explore the Shores
| Explore the Shores is a network of sites designed to provide barrier-free accessibility, educational opportunities and a connection to recreation and fishing in Manistee County, where fresh water is in abundance. In its inception, the program was the result of Manistee County being chosen by Easter Seals for implementation of its Rural Solutions Project, funded in part by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. |