By Gerry VandeVusse, Water Wonderland Chapter
If you’re headed to the 2026 ACBS Vintage Boat Week in Port Huron, Michigan, you may be interested in exploring more of this beautiful state? From gleaming waters to quaint towns and some of the best boating in the country, Michigan has so much to offer.
The following story about some of the wonderful towns and views Michigan has to offer was originally published in the Spring of 2010, when the Water Wonderland Chapter of ACBS was busy planning the International Show. This year, the Michigan Chapter of ACBS is hard at work and it is shaping up to be another fantastic celebration of boats, boating and ACBS friendships. Come for Port Huron, stay for the entire state. Come back to Michigan!
Petoskey…just the sound of the town’s name invites you to the home of the million dollar sunsets. Located in the northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Petoskey is situated on the south shore of Little Traverse Bay, which opens into Lake Michigan, and shares the bay with Bay Harbor to the west and Harbor Springs on its north shore. The area has many historical and scenic locations with both boating and non-boating ties.
The Petoskey area was originally known as Bear River when the first missionary arrived in 1865. The town was renamed for an Odawa Indian chief and incorporated in 1895. It started as a lumbering town; wood from the region helped rebuild Chicago after the Great Fire.
From 1873 to 1960 passenger trains brought summer visitors from Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, and Indianapolis. Steamships like the North American and South American carried passengers from ports around the Great Lakes. This area is home to many small museums and historical sites. In Petoskey there’s the Little Traverse History Museum, housed in the old train depot, that has exhibits of Odawa Indian artifacts and Ernest Hemingway’s early life on Lake Charlevoix and Walloon Lake. Bay View Association, a National Historic Landmark, is a charming, century-old, Victorian community of 440 cottages and summer homes founded by the Methodist Church in 1875. Another beautiful old building still in use as a hotel is Stafford’s Perry Hotel; it was originally advertised as the only “fireproof” hotel in town.
Bay Harbor is a new, modern, resort community transformed from an abandoned quarry and cement plant into a world-class resort and yachting center. Recognized by Motor Boating magazine as one of the top ten ports in North America, the Bay Harbor History Museum on Main Street features a video presentation that shows the remarkable transformation from “eyesore” cement plant to today’s “Crown Jewel of Michigan.”
Harbor Springs, the third community that looks out over Little Traverse Bay, is an old resort town like Petoskey. It was first settled by the Odawa Indians around 1740. Later, came the Jesuit missionaries who built the Holy Childhood of Jesus Catholic Church and Indian School. The 1892 church still stands at the end of Main Street. Harbor Springs historical sites include the Andrew Blackbird Museum, which previously was the home of Mr. Blackbird and served as the first post office in the village. Harbor Springs History Museum is located in the former City Hall; both are located close to each other on East Main Street.
The drive north of Harbor Springs up Highway M-119 goes to Cross Village. Near Good Hart you will first come to the St Ignatius Church that marks the site of the 1741 Native American settlement. The church located there now was built in 1889. Keep traveling north and stop at the Legs Inn in Cross Village. Have a beer or iced tea and a pierogi (a Polish delicacy), and discover why it’s named Legs Inn. Then continue on to Bliss on Lake Shore Drive and then Lakeview Road. This drive will take you through the Tunnel of Trees and along the shore of Sturgeon Bay. You will view some beautiful scenery on this short trip. Pleasantville Road (C81) will return you to Harbor Springs.
So please “Come Back to Michigan” where your classic boat may have been built, and where you’ll surely have a wonderful time.