If you’re looking for the perfect family adventure this summer, White Lake is the place to be.

Not only does the White Lake area offer ideal access to sandy beaches, stunning views, and awesome nature trails, we also have lots of great opportunities to give you and your kids a vacation that won’t just leave them sunburnt and sandy. We’re talkin’ things to do that are fun and educational!

Each year, families from Grand Rapids, Holland, and beyond join us for their family vacations, and we love offering up our favorite destination spots.

When you take a trip to White Lake with your family, here are your can’t-miss destinations.

 

Michigan’s Heritage Park

Interested in a beautiful walk through the woods of Michigan and learning about 10,000 years of Michigan history? Welcome to the famed Michigan’s Heritage Park.

The combined park and museum is situated in open air in the heart of the northern Muskegon County woods. Here, you’ll find a half-mile trail loop that takes you through the last 10,000 years of Michigan’s history.

From Prehistoric Mastodons to the Civil War

The vivid look into the natural and societal past of our area starts many, many years ago with a mastodon dig site. Kids can help paleontologists uncover the remains of this giant prehistoric animal while learning about all of the creatures who roamed this part of earth before humans arrived.

As the trail loop progresses, children will see what daily life was like in a Native American Wigwam Village. Fur traders at the Fur Trade Post will ask for help in their business, and chores will need to be done at the Settlers Cabin. There are even Civil War Soldiers on site who have made camp for the “winter” and are more than willing to share their remarkable tales of surviving northern Michigan snow storms.

In addition to all these things, you’ll learn about Michigan farming, the lumber industry, and the Civilian Conservation Corps or CCC. The CCC was a program started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 as part of the New Deal. In Michigan, the CCC built public camps, recreational facilities, foot trails, and much more. Today, we continue to use and cherish what these men created.

Hours

June – September 2016

  • Mon & Thurs – Sat: 10am – 4pm
  • Sun: 1pm – 4pm
  • Closed Tues & Wed

October 2016

  • Mon – Fri, 10am – 4pm

Tickets

  • Youth (2 – 12) – $5
  • Teens & Adults – $10
  • Seniors (65 & up) – $8

Contact

8637 N Durham Rd
Whitehall, MI 49461
(231) 894-0342

 

Museums Near White Lake

White River Light Station 

You can’t visit Lake Michigan without seeing the inside of a lighthouse. And a favorite along the coastline is right here in White Lake.

The White River Light Station is a lighthouse and museum combined, meaning you can not only climb the spiral staircase to take in the gorgeous views from the top of the tower, but you’ll also learn a thing or two along the way. The museum portion of the light station offers numerous photographs and nautical artifacts from the 19th and early 20th century.

White River Light Station is located at the mouth of White River as it empties into Lake Michigan, approximately a 15-minute drive from our lakeside inn.

6199 Murray Rd
Whitehall, MI 49461
(231) 894-8265

Montague City Museum

To learn a bit about the history of the Whitehall and Montague areas, head to the Montague City Museum, open on weekends. Montague began as a lumbering town, and the museum displays a number of artifacts from this era as well as a dress worn by local, Nancy Ann Fleming, the year she was crowned Miss America.

8717 Meade St
Montague, MI 49437
(231) 894-9267

 

Art Near White Lake

White River Gallery

Throughout the year, you’ll find a number of unique art exhibits held at White River Gallery in Whitehall. Their shows include art made by a wide variety of talented local and Michigan artists. Enjoy an eclectic mixture of paintings, textiles, glasswork, jewelry, and sculpture.

In conjunction with White River Gallery, The Arts Council of White Lake also offers art classes for all ages, concert series, and other enrichment events for visitors. From our lakeside inn, the gallery is just a pleasant 12-minute walk across the bridge and into downtown Whitehall.

106 E Colby St
Whitehall, MI  49461
(231) 893- 2524

Muskegon Museum of Art

For more art shows, head south to Muskegon and the Muskegon Museum of Art. In addition to the museum’s own outstanding permanent collection, the MMA also displays a number of noteworthy traveling and regional shows throughout the year.

296 W Webster Ave
Muskegon, MI 49440
(231) 720-9590

Bygone Basics Culinary School

Any chefs or bakers in the family? If so, consider taking a class at Bygone Basics Culinary School. This school is operated out of a local Montague home that is more than 140 years old.

There, you can take classes that focus on cooking and baking concepts from a “simpler time.” Choose from a number of focuses, including Baking the Perfect Pie, Fermenting, Jam-Making, Biscotti-Making, and more! There are also unique classes especially for kids.

5200 Anderson Rd
Montague, MI 49437
(231) 740-4065

 

More Educational Fun Near White Lake

There’s more educational fun to be had elsewhere as well. For example, if there’s an animal lover in the family, the Lewis Farm Market Petting Zoo in New Era has tons of amazing critters to get to know—from a camel and a deer to alpacas and zebus!

If you have a child who wants to learn how to ride a horse, just head to nearby Rainbow Ranch. Or if you just want to get out in nature, there’s the 22-mile Hart-Montague Trail, which makes the perfect track through nature—whether you’re going by bike or on foot. Of course, you can always just head to the beach and see if you can find yourself some beach glass too!

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