WINTER is a blast in Michigan. If you're yearning for the great outdoors, there's crosscountry skiing and sledding nearby. A short drive will get you to downhill skiing and snowmobile trails.

We always make a point to cut our own Christmas tree at one of the tree farms. The shops in Saugatuck stay open through Christmas. The town goes all out for the season decorating everything with lights. After the holidays, there's still plenty of shopping to be done as the focus shifts to the discount malls in Holland.

For details about winter activities & attractions in northwest Michigan contact: Cadillac Area Visitors Bureau, Gaylord Area Tourism Bureau, Petskey Harbor and Traverse City Visitors Bureau

Click here to find out about Special Winter Promotions

In the SPRING you'll find wildflowers in the woods--trillium, may apples, trout lilies, marsh marigolds. Bright green, they burst from the dark leaf cover. Our favorite past time is to lay out on the deck and watch the birds. Since the leaves won't have filled in yet you can see them flitting around as they build their nests. Biking the Kal-Haven trail is especially fun when the weather is still a bit cool. Asparagus is available at road-side stands. Most are run on the honor system (this is the country after all) so just put your money in the bucket.

By SUMMER the berries start to come in. Strawberries are ready in late June and Blueberries in mid-July. But that's just the begining of the U-Pick season. Peaches, apples, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins--you name it. By July the Lake Michigan is warm enough to swim in but don't discount June. There are plenty of places to fish. The smaller lakes are stocked with bluegills, bass and muskie. You can rent canoes on the rivers or sailboats out of Saugatuck and South Haven. Both those towns are great for poking around in antique shops and galleries.

FALL is my personal favorite. The farmstands are bursting with sweet corn, tomatoes, watermelons. There's nothing like farm fresh vegetables. I always find the most lopsided pumpkin to make a goofy jack-o-lantern. We drive out to the Todd Farm to see the geese resting up before their flight south. The neighboring town of Fennville even has a festival to celebrate the event. A walk through the trails in nearby Allegan State Forest will sometimes get you a glimpse of a wild swan.

And all year round there's a spectacular sunset waiting to be enjoyed on the "West Coast" of Michigan.