3 Bedroom, 2 Bath, All Season Home With 7 Acres On Beautiful Herring Creek

Cottage Description: Our modern, well equipped home, half-way between Frankfort and Arcadia, overlooks Herring Creek. The area around the cottage is landscaped with native plants, a vegetable garden is available for the harvest of produce in season, and there is a bee hive on the edge of the property. Acreage on both sides of the creek is joined by a graceful arched footbridge. Across the creek from the house is an open area with picnic table and fire pit. The creek joins Upper Herring Lake and Lower Herring Lake, then flows out of Lower Herring Lake into Lake Michigan. Both Herring Lakes are noted fishing lakes, and the outlet of the creek into Lake Michigan is stunningly beautiful. Within 2 miles of the house we are blessed with four Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy nature preserves; the Arcadia Dunes, Green Point, Fruit Haven, and Upper Herring Lake preserves. Both Arcadia Dunes and Green Point have extensive Lake Michigan shoreline, and all have wonderful hiking, biking, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing trails. The town of Frankfort, 5 miles away, is a lively tourist destination, and the southern boundary of Sleeping Bear Dunes is just 12 miles to the north. The highly rated "Arcadia Bluffs" golf course is about 7 miles to the south, and we are 15 miles from the Crystal Mountain Ski Resort and golf course. Amenities: A large deck on the upper level overlooks Herring Creek. The deck is furnished with table, chairs, umbrella, and gas grill. Also on the upper level are a dining area, well equipped kitchen (dishwasher, coffee grinder/maker, Cuisinart, etc.), two bedrooms each with a full-sized bed, and a bathroom with whirlpool bath. Downstairs are a bedroom (full-sized bed) opening onto a small deck overlooking the creek, a common area, a bathroom, and a sunroom in which a single bed can be placed. The Sunroom contains a flat panel TV with DVR, an interesting movie selection, and other options for playing video files (no TV reception). We now have high speed internet. Truly Year-Round: There are many wonderful summer activities available in the area. Proximity to Herring Creek, the two Herring Lakes, Lake Michigan, and the nature preserves open unlimited opportunities for canoeing and kayaking, boating, swimming, fishing, hiking, biking, birding, and observing nature. We actually most enjoy our “off-season” time. The house is well insulated, with a gas furnace and efficient wood-burning stove. The fall colors are spectacular, and from mid-September to late November there are salmon spawning in the creek right in front of the house. Winter brings lots of snow, which means lots of snowshoeing and cross-country skiing on our 7 acres, or in the nearby nature preserves and Lake Michigan beaches. On request snowshoes or cross-country skis may be made available to guests. In spring Steelhead and other fish species spawn in the creek and woodland wildflowers, morel mushrooms, and migrating birds appear along the many beautiful nature preserve trails.