White Pine Trail - Comstock Park to Rockford (MI)

It had been several years since Chris and I biked through Rockford, MI on the White Pine Trail.  At the time we were heading south and meeting my sister for pick up so there was no time to go exploring.  Friday July 15 was different.

By 9:15am we had dropped Schooner off at doggie day care and were on our way to Grand Rapids, MI to ride the Forest Hills Trail on the east side of Grand Rapids.  Because of the name of the trail, especially the word "Hills" we thought it best to drive the trail before committing.  Upon close inspection of what appeared to be an adequately maintained but somewhat narrow trail which sometimes forced the rider onto the road, as well as a good number of hills to traverse, we decided to head for the White Pine Trail instead.

Actually finding the trailhead for the White Pine proved to be somewhat of a challenge.  The Michigan Trails magazine is a great source for bikers in MI, but was a bit vague as to where the trailhead at Comstock Park was located.  We discovered there is a Comstock Park community and there is a Comstock Park recreational area.  We were unable to find the staging area at the first location, so we opted to park at the Michigan Whitecaps baseball stadium which is next to the trail. This was not a game day so we had many spaces from which to choose.

Whitecaps Baseball Stadium

It was 11am and 69 degrees (in JULY!) and we were on the trail headed north toward Rockford.

The trail is 10 feet wide, asphalt paved, and well maintained.  For much of the ride both sides of the trail are shielded by tall lush trees. From time to time the trail crosses the Grand River or in the photo on the right it crosses US 131.

The Rogue River Park staging area near Belmont offers parking, restrooms, and water. 

 Riding toward Rockford offers much scenery and photo ops!

As we approach town  we notice a very nice park with walking or dog walking paths to the east.  There are a good number of cyclists and walkers out today enjoying the weather.  Because of some trail maintenance we are directed to make a slight detour into town.  

Found this old train as we followed the detour

The detour gives us the opportunity to see a little more of town than we might have otherwise.  There are boutiques (having sidewalk sales) and eateries along the trail.  The town is small but very busy.

On the left is one of many places to park near the trail.

On the right and below is a walking path along the Grand River.
(Click on any picture to enlarge)

It is noon and time for lunch.  We chose Ramona's Table for our dining experience.  Bike racks were nearby and all along the trail.

My selection was the Maui Wowie Fish Tacos.  Those who know me also know that I'm a sucker for fish tacos.  Very difficult for me to pass them up.  EVER!  These tacos were seasoned and grilled Mahi Mahi with a black bean mango salsa, with chipolte, feta, and lettuce.
The pic on the right was Chris' selection of soup (French Onion) and 1/2 a Turkey sandwich on a toasted cranberry bread.  Both meals were excellent!

After lunch we walked around the park and dams.

Picture perfect view of the dams in Rockford

 We decided to jump back on our tandem and head north a little further.  There is a walking path and wooden bridge across the river from our bike path.

We biked 1.5 miles north of Rockford and turned around to head back.

 On our ride south we decided to try to find the REAL trailhead in Comstock Park as mentioned in our trail magazine.  We bypassed the car and kept on cruising.
On the left we are at a scenic overlook of the Grand River.  Anyone notice the ominous clouds in the pictures?  We had the clouds most of the day, but thankfully did not get rained on during the ride.



A few miles past the stadium the trail stops and makes a T.  We are the little blue dot in the picture on the left.  Still no park in site, but we do find it on the map.  We took the trail to the east and crossed the Grand River.  There is a bike trail all of the way to Comstock Park but a portion of it meant we had to cross a fairly busy intersection with no traffic light and ride on the street briefly in a biking lane.

Doing it all over again I would definitely park at or near the stadium or drive to Belmont for a staging area.  Comstock Park is not all that user friendly for the ride north!

We arrived back to our car at 3pm after riding 24 miles.  Checked the weather app and it was still 69 degrees!

What a fun day!  Would I do it again?  Oh yes!  You know how I like those fish tacos!!!

Berry Junction - Hart-Montague Trail - Muskegon to Shelby (MI)

Fred Meijer Berry Junction Trail

We have been summer residents of Duck Creek RV Resort in Muskegon, MI since summer of 2012. It is by far the best designed and well maintained park in which we stay over the course of a year from Texas to Oklahoma to Michigan and then back; a course repeated annually.  Roger and Casey work 24/7 to see that the park is 5 Star and this year the campers at the park found the addition of a newly laid trail extending from the park entrance to the Fred Meijer Berry Junction Trail.  This will give bikers and walkers of all ages the security of getting on the trail without needing to share the road with motorists.  Big shout out to Casey and Roger for making the dream of this trail connector come to fruition!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

We are no strangers to this particular trail as we ride some portion of it almost weekly.  Not only can we ride out of our campground on our bike to access the Berry Junction Trail, but it then connects to the Hart-Montague Trail about 10 miles north of us in Montague.  We have eagerly anticipated biking this year because of the "face lift" given to the trail over the past year.  Brand new asphalt!  AND, all but one of the detours have vanished!  This, my friends, is so sweet!

It is 68 degrees at 8:35 am on Tuesday, June 21, 2016.  With Schooner in good hands at the nearby Dog Star Ranch, Chris and I set out on a day trip of biking our favorite trail.

One of the prettiest areas on the Berry Junction Trail is a heavily wooded area with three wood bridges (above pic) and a giant carved wooden eagle and its nest (left).

There are many pieces of art along the trail including this giant butterfly (right) found in a small park in south Whitehall.

Upon entering the resort community of Whitehall and across from the marina you will see the colorful sails pictured on the left.
Pic on the right is of the White River where it feeds into White Lake (which feeds into Lake Michigan).

The adjoining town to the north of Whitehall is Montague and where we begin the Hart-Montague Trail.

Along the trail is this gazebo, located behind Montague Foods.  There is also a campground, very nice restrooms, ample parking, and a nearby ice cream shop.  Every cyclist's dream trailhead!

One of my favorite things about this trail (and there are many), is the way the trail is lined with tall beautiful trees.  Many times we ride under a canopy of shade formed by the lush branches.






In Rothbury we must take a detour as the last bit of construction on this trail has yet to be completed.  The detour is well marked and easy to follow.  Before long we are back on the trail.
We plan to have lunch in New Era, but it is only 10:30am and we keep riding north past New Era and then past the Country Dairy. We always enjoy a stop at the dairy which serves up spectacular hamburgers, cheese curds, and the very best ice cream!  Now I'm going to start getting hungry!!!  Must...keep...pedaling!!!

These two pics of the trail are the reason we just keep on pedaling. The beauty here is magnificent!

The next town we ride through is Shelby.  There are several places in town to dine, but my favorite stop is the Shelby Gem Factory. One time we took the tour and were shown how the gems were grown.  After the gems are grown they are sent to gem cutters to create the final product.  Warning:  this can be one of the more expensive stops along the trail, but oh so fun!  Must...keep...pedaling!!!

Around Shelby there are multiple workout stations along the bike path.  At one of those stations we stopped for a quick stretch and water break.  Having ridden 25 miles from our campground we decided to turn around and head back south to New Era.

Trailside Restaurant in New Era

The Trailside Restaurant in New Era is the "dangling carrot" for me.  Knowing that we were making a stop for lunch at this cozy trailside eatery made the trip even more fun!
Monday through Friday turkey and dressing is the lunch special.  For the bargain price of $8.95 you also get fresh asparagus, potatoes, cranberry sauce, and a roll.  When Kathy greeted us today there was no doubt as to what we were going to have for lunch.  No menu required!

Fuel for the ride home

Dessert Menu

Shortcake with REAL whipped cream!

The only unknown was which of their fresh homemade desserts we were going to split.  We decided on the strawberry shortcake which is made using a sweet biscuit rather than cake.  Once again, Kathy took good care of us.  She even split the dessert for us!  The one below was all mine.  Let me tell you, it was so good!



Upon checking out, a young employee comments that she cannot read Kathy's writing on the check then heads back to work.  Kathy commented that she was known to have nice handwriting and Chris had no trouble reading it upside down.  Chris and Kathy decided the problem was that the ticket was written in "cursive" which is no longer taught in the schools and that being able to read cursive was going to disappear with this generation.  Chris said that along with cursive writing Kathy's strawberry shortcake was going to disappear with our generation.  The young employee comes back and asks what is disappearing.
Chris repeats "The strawberry shortcake will disappear with our generation."  The girl says "Oh no, the strawberry shortcake will still be here even if Kathy retires."
Chris asks "Okay, when Kathy retires are you going to make the strawberry shortcake?"
Girl, "Well no, not the biscuit."
Kathy responded, "It's going away with our generation."
Get it while you can, folks.  It's worth the trip, either biking or by car.

Between the lunch in New Era, the sunshine, and the newly paved bike trail we completed our 51 mile day trip at 2:35pm in 76 degree temps and had a little energy to spare.  Very little!