Antrim Creek Natural Area — Attraction in Banks Township

We visit here often. It’s a big loop with options to lengthen or shorten the loop. I love it because 1/2 the loop is in beautiful woods with wide, well maintained trails and half is on the Lake Michigan shoreline/beach. It’s a perfect hike to do with visitors. Not too long and easy to do in tennis shoes or a Teva like shoe.

There are two entrances and either starting point is great but if I had to pick one, I’d pick the south entrance and then start by walking through the woods first and then looping back on the beach. The trails are flat enough and wide enough that everyone feels comfortable - more of a walk than a hike. There is lots of nature to be seen and the slower you walk the beach the more likely you are to find a Petoskey stone or a little critter. Our older dog and our older parents all enjoy this 1.25 mile loop.

Lastly, there is poison ivy along the trail but stick to the trails and you’ll be fine. I’ve included a pic for those who don’t know what it looks like. “Leaves of...

Two parks for the price of nothing! The north entrance leads to a very nice beach with great views. Their are some great rocks for people into rock collecting. Their are places to park and trails to hike.

At the south entrance you park then there are trails to hike. 1 leads back to the north park. The other one leads to about a 5 minute hike to a stream view area. You'll see the stream almost right away, but in the distance and between foliage. It's a very nice stream, though nothing epic. There is then a 3 minute hike to the beach where the stream meets Lake Michigan. Again here the views are spectacular. Thetrails could be better marked and better upkept to get rid of low branches.

The trail connecting the two parks is about 0.8 miles. Overall a 5...

Nature at its finest! The beach is fine sand with clear, blue water. Right at the shore are rocks that extend about 15 feet into the water. Bring water shoes! Rock hunting was fun, though! There are also outhouses right by the beach. I didn’t use them, but I've read bring your own toilet paper. This park has so much to offer that we didn't get to explore. We entered the park at the North end. As far as parking goes, there are about 15 spots spread out into little turn offs of the dirt entrance road. At the south end are dunes and a trail to a clear water creek that runs down to the beach. Hiking is supposed to be beautiful. My kids (ages 10, 4 and 2) were entertained for hours! Great...