Author: Rick Oberle
by Rick Oberle (longtime Michigan roadie)
If anybody is looking for a great ride in southern Michigan, this is it: Van Buren County!
I was there for the 20th Michigander bike tour but wanted to ride more than the 25 or so miles routed, so I pointed my front wheel to points unknown and followed it. It was a fantastic day.
I started in Gobles (20 miles NW of Kalamazoo) and went to Bloomingdale. There I enjoyed the most wonderful local history museum I have ever seen. The building itself is the depot built for the railroad which is now the Kal-Haven Trail. The village purchased it in the 70s with the fantasy of creating a local history museum but without a penny with which to do it. When the trail came through, there was now a need and an audience for it so the State gave them some money to stablize the building and to dress it up. No exhibits though. Volunteers took over from there and have unearthed some of the most fascinating artifacts from a one-time oil boom town including an oil derrick, a oil pump from the 30s, an exhibit of the Queens of Bloomingdale (some real lookers in there!), stuff from W K Kelloggs Sanitorium (for you doctors out there), etc. They need to expand so they are moving a one-room school from somewhere in the township to the park. Job well done, Bloomingdale!!!
From there, I passed a few lakes on completely untravelled roads and went through Breedsville. There is a genuine counry store there (along with a few other ruins of the 18th century), a babbling brook complete with park, and some really nice people.
Continuing south, it occured to me that I was in “Pure Michigan”, just like the TV ads say. There was NO sprawl, nothing but farms (mostly blueberry, which are in PEAK season now), farmsteads, houses from days gone by, no Wal-Marts, no Home Depots, nothing but pure Michigan. I was beginning to think it was completely gone. It sure is around Lansing….
Next stop was Lawrence. There was a REAL farmers market with REAL farmers. Everybody was tied to Lawrence (Pop 800?) and there was no sense that it was contrived. It just belonged.
Continuing south past I-94, I hit Keeler and Sister Lakes. And STILL no sprawl; nothing but pure Michigan. No cars either and the few that I did encounter were local farmers. Nobody was rushing to WalMart for whatever mysterious reason people rush to WalMart. Sister Lakes is a cluster of three lakes populated primarily by Chicagoans, judging from the license plates. Very laid back and pleasant.
From Sister Lakes, I headed back north and got to Hartford. The cheerleaders desperately wanted to wash my bike! Only 5 dollars. I didn’t get my bike washed, but after passing them at ten different corners, I almost relented.
You should see the farm houses!! Lots and lots of them built in the 1800s, in perfect condition. All attached to a farm. What a concept…. No Kit #6543w5 from Home Depot dumped on one acre lots ANYWHERE I traveled. Pure Michigan….
My destination was South Haven and believe it or not, there is yet another rail trail from Hartford to South Haven. I didn’t take it, but it looked great if you had tires wider than 23mm. It went through Covert on its way to South Haven. Covert is exactly what its name implies — a place for escaped slaves to hide. It has a lot of history and judging from the current residents, many of them are descended from the original “settlers.”
My final ten miles were along Lake Michigan on the old Blue Star Highway. I am sure there is a reason it is called the Blue Star Highway, but I don’t know it. I did see a few McMansions here though, as they could be situated right on the big lake. They were tasteful, however. Not kits from Lowes.
My arrival in South Haven was without fanfare and I was hardly alone. South Haven is a hopping little resort town with some of the finest beaches on the planet. Having said that, it is still a real town in that there is a dime-store on the main street complemented by all sorts of boutiques and trendy restaurants.
The trip was 80 miles and they were among my 80 finest ever on my bike. I can’t recommend this area enough. I would be happy to share my route, but the fact of the matter is that you can go down any road and it will pretty much be like all the others. Don’t come home without some blueberries!
Rick
Rick Oberle
Geographic Insights
(517) 487-2677
www.GeoInsights.biz, Home of WellMagic
