When does autumn settle in across the region surrounding Michigan’s largest inland lake? Sometimes, it’s hard to tell.
Along Houghton Lake and neighboring Higgins Lake (the state’s 10th largest lake), only a few miles apart and actually connected, summer in the north central Lower Peninsula likes to linger.
Take it from someone like me who owns a home along the Au Sable River’s fabled South Branch near Roscommon, a few minutes’ drive from both lakes. Most folks decide it’s the Tuesday just after Labor Day weekend, when the last frenetic holiday revels of summer are done. But for others, those who often spend more than a weekend or two here, you’re rewarded with a bigger, longer show. Most of the time.
For folks such as longtime area resident Glenn Stuart, who lives a short walk from the South Branch, the wait is worth it.
“Everybody raves about Vermont, but Michigan has more color than anyplace on Earth. Everything about fall seems to be just comfortable. The temperatures aren’t too cold or too hot. It’s just gorgeous here in September and October. They have to be my favorite months out of the whole year,” Stuart says.
Some years, you’re in shorts, serenaded by grasshoppers and crickets singing their own fragile goodbyes to the season. Other years, savoring your morning coffee by the river at my house just upstream from Glenn’s is better with a blanket, jacket, and perhaps a fleece hat. As fall deepens, watching the first hints of frost tinge the maples a brilliant red weeks before their neighbors is, for me, a melancholy treat.
Either way, as the inevitable unfolds you’re witness to Mother Nature breathing a relaxing sigh and getting ready for what’s next — and this small patch of the state is a great spot to do it, culminating in the first two weeks of October when the rest of the region is at its absolute brilliant best.
What the season brings to this region, however, means that you can enjoy fall in some surprising ways, and in others that are always part of the season. Here are a few of my favorites.
Drink It In
Cider in northern Michigan? You betcha. Apple cider isn’t just a southern Michigan treat. Drink in fall’s sweetness at The Forbidden Fruit Apple Orchard, outside Roscommon. It’s so new, you may not even know it’s been open a few years now.
Owners Chip and Carol Wright have put in 4,000 trees in a 5-acre fenced plot that keeps the deer out. They say they plan to add at least another 2,000 trees, and they’ve just added some plum trees.
Photo Courtesy of Bill Simeon, the Apple Farmer.
“These are tall, spindle trees. They’re designed to be on a trellis wire and grow to 9 to 10 feet. Pruning them promotes the fruit buds, and that’s the key. They’ve been doing it this way in Europe, but it’s fairly new to the U.S.,” Chip Wright explains. The Wrights sell six varieties (many other varieties will be available in the future, as the trees mature) of picked apples from mid-August to late November.
Wright starts pressing unpasteurized cider the first week in September. The first to go in is the honey crisp variety, producing a unique clear drink. As other varieties ripen, they’re combined to make cider with that traditional golden hue, all sold by the half gallon. The orchard is open for tours every Sunday beginning in late August.
“Everybody raves about Vermont, but Michigan has more color than anyplace on Earth. Everything about fall seems to be just comfortable. It’s just gorgeous here in September and October. They have to be my favorite months out of the whole year.” – Glenn Stuart
Quilt It
Enjoy the changing seasons while following a different tapestry, the Roscommon County Quilt Block Trail. Stretching along Houghton Lake’s south shore and over to nearby Lake St. Helen are 21 roadside quilt blocks on wood, telling the stories of the families, history, and culture of the county.
Harvest It
Drive to Wellington Farm USA and you’ll be warping back to 1932. The farm is a 60-acre living history museum set during the Great Depression in northern Michigan, and it’s located on the site of a community that existed here between 1874 and 1918. It’s the project of retired Grayling High School music and theater teacher Howard Taylor, who grew up on a farm in the northwest area of the Lower Peninsula. He started this museum across from his house in 1996, to ensure that the legacy of Wellington and farming endure. The museum has grown from its original two buildings to feature 26 structures with farm demos and a crafter’s alley, plus plenty of fall demonstrations.
The corn maze, depending on the weather, opens in late September or early October. Pumpkin-picking and annual “pumpkin-chuckin’ ” contests take place in mid-October, and wagon hayrides pulled by steam-powered tractors that might be unique on a Michigan farm will be available Oct. 28-30, Taylor says.
Camp It
As Glenn Stuart likes to say, camping season’s not over by a long shot in the fall, and you’ve got plenty of picturesque spots to do it. North and South Higgins Lake state parks feature sites in a mature hardwood forest. In early September, this stunning lake, once rated the world’s sixth most beautiful by National Geographic, is still warm enough for swimming or wading, and you can always enjoy a campfire.
Houghton Lake State Forest Camp ground, on the Higgins north shore, has vault flush toilets and an artesian well. If you’re considering other options, there are several different secluded state forest spots, plus nearby private campgrounds, to choose from.
One of my favorites is on the South Branch east of Grayling off M-72. There are no fancy amenities at Canoe Harbor State Forest Campground, just nature. You’ll find a pitcher water pump and pit toilets, and magnificent scenery. You’ll be enveloped by deep forest, and the river’s trout are steps away, available for catch-and-release fishing. Other spots include Hartwick Pines State Park and more state forest campgrounds along the main stream around the Grayling area.
Fish It
You can also enjoy both lakes, and that fantastic fall color show, from the water. B&B Sports Center & Marina on Higgins Lake rents pontoons into early September, while Houghton Lake’s Sun Chasers can rent you a ride into October. Fish for bass, walleye, pike, and panfish. Cool weather means the weed growth recedes, and the fish are eager to put on some weight prior to the river icing up. Combine fishing with lakeshore color viewing, or take in the colors on a fly fishing float organized by Grayling’s shops including Drake’s Fly Shop, Old AuSable Fly Shop, or Gates Au Sable Lodge.
Paddle It
A fall color canoe trip will send you about five hours through the Mason Tract from two liveries in Roscommon: Paddle Brave Camp & Canoe and Campbell’s Canoes, Kayaks & Tube Rentals. Shorter trips are also available.
Bringing a canoe or kayak? Paddle Brave will pick you up at the end of your trip with prior arrangements. Or spot a vehicle on Houghton Lake’s north boat access and kayak or canoe between the lakes on the clear Cut River.
Hike It
Walk your way into the season on hiking trails at both Higgins Lake state parks, including one circling shallow Marl Lake, part of the Cut River connecting Higgins with Houghton Lake. Another at Higgins Lake North will take you by the CCC Museum, one of hundreds of former camps of the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps across the country. This site was also home to the Higgins Lake Nursery, which helped reforest Michigan and shipped millions of seedlings across the country.
Other hiking options include the Mason Tract Pathway, about a 9-mile out-and back trek through the woods bordering the South Branch, which also becomes a beautiful cross-country ski trail in winter.
About 20 minutes north via I-75, the trails at Hartwick Pines State Park, featuring 49 acres of monstrous old-growth pines and hardwoods, lead you to the Au Sable’s East Branch. There’s even a paved, fully accessible 1.25-mile trail through the trees (Old Growth Forest Trail) and a driving route, aptly named Scenic Trail. Get information that details the state’s lumbering history at the park’s visitors center.
Bike It
The woods near Houghton and Higgins lakes have miles of routes, both paved and unpaved. Hop on the sandy routes of the Mason Tract, just north of Roscommon, or follow the main two-track road north of the Chase Bridge Road parking lot at the river. It links to another sandy road that follows the Au Sable River’s South Branch to M-72. All told, it’s about 15 miles. Double check to make sure it’s open when you visit.
You can also bike the North Higgins Lake State Park Trail, starting from North Higgins Lake State Park. You’ll be on part of the Iron Belle Trail, a 2,000-mile system connecting Detroit and Ironwood in the western Upper Peninsula, now about two-thirds complete. Other fun bike routes on the Iron Belle include Grayling’s 11-mile paved Community Pathway, which takes riders to the mountain bike trails of Hartwick Pines State Park and Hanson Hills Recreation Area to the west, both stunning in fall. You’ll find loads of ATV trails, too.
Drive It
Hop in your car and drive through thousands of acres of color. Starting on I-75 or U.S. 127 between Houghton Lake and the Mackinac Bridge, the road is one big show, usually between Oct. 1-15. Or follow the two-lanes such as Military Road, Chase Bridge Road, or M-76 near Roscommon; M-55 from I-75 to Houghton Lake; M-18 between Gladwin and Roscommon; or M-72.
Dine It
I recommend multiple worthy restaurants to explore, including two that are at Forest Dunes. Want riverfront food? Try the Cut River Grille near Roscommon, or Gates Au Sable Lodge on the main stream. Casual Higgins off-lake spots include the Landmark and, on Houghton Lake, The Limberlost. Try breakfast and brunch at Roscommon’s Beechwood Café, run by two chefs who know their stuff, or stop at Matt’s Lake Street Grill and Pizzeria.
A former Roscommon bank has been repurposed into The Village Vault restaurant mall, which includes a new brewpub, the Irish Kilt Brewing Co. (you’ll find multiple house-made brews on tap and non-alcoholic choices, as well), Rosco’s Coney Island, and BC Pizza. And, if the weather doesn’t cooperate, enjoy bowling with a full food menu at Fred’s of Roscommon.
Overnight It
Places to stay include motels in Houghton Lake and Grayling, as well as rental homes on the river and both lakes. For a switch, try a state park camping cabin.
Whatever you choose to do, watching the seasons change in the Houghton-Higgins Lake area is one of the true joys of a Michigan fall.
