Hidden Lake Gardens — Attraction in Franklin Township

This place is beautiful! We visited in the afternoon on a Sunday. It was a little busy. We went on the 700 foot long 65 foot tall canopy walk. The view was gorgeous! They only allow 10 people on at a time, I'm sure for safety purposes, but we did not have a wait either time we went across. We did go across twice. The lake, which was directly down the hill from the parking spot to the canopy, was also stunning. I mean the photos really say it all. This place was just incredible. Mature trees towering above you, shimmering water reflecting the sky with tiny ripples spreading across the surface. The chipmunk activity this time of year (early November) was so much fun to witness. The colors all around you, the crows calling, and squirrels chattering. It really is a magical spot. They have port-a-poties throughout the park available to use. Most of the walking is up or down hill. There are paved pathways and more rustic hiking trails available. 1/3 of the way up to the canopy walk it turns into large gravel, so I recommend wearing shoes with thick soles. The bottoms of my feet hurt a bit after wearing regular flat bottoms (vans style) tennis shoes. They have a number of picnic areas and scenic views along the main road. One we stopped at was the conifer tree section right behind the conservatory. It was quite stunning. There are many different varieties of conifers and they are all so different. We did not have time to check out the conservatory, but we will definitely be back. There is a hosta section, we didn't stop by. We drove past it and it looked gorgeous. Entry costs $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for students K-12 and for college students with ID. Free for kids under four years old and there is a discount for seniors. I just don't remember what it is. This place also has benches throughout the park, thank God. My husband was essentially running up some of the hills and I could not breathe. Overall it was an unmatchable and...

I have so many good memories of Hidden Lake Gardens. My family has been going here for years but now we are saddened and shocked to see the state it’s in and what it has turned into. It feels like a commercialized tourist attraction in Irish Hills instead of a well maintained botanical garden.

The Demonstration Garden and Perennial Garden have went from beautifully landscaped beds to beds of weeds. It appears the annual beds were planted this year but not properly maintained by the gardens. Perhaps in the years ahead, dig the beds up and redo them in a way that requires less maintenance? There are a-lot of flowering shrubs and perennials that could be put in.

The gazebo is still standing but is full of rotting wood.

The parking lot needs repaving. It is slowly turning to rubble.

The entrance used to be beautifully landscaped and it is also overgrown.

Trees aren’t trimmed and looked unhealthy.

The gift shop that was once upstairs with a beautiful view has been moved to a corner in the basement

I get it, we had Covid, you have no volunteers, but how much longer is this excuse going to be valid? It’s been 4-1/2 years now and it seems to be all about the Skywalk now. I’m assuming this has been a great money maker for the gardens but doesn’t appear to be invested back in? Memberships have went up, entrance fees have tripled, but yet the gardens continue to disappoint more year after year.

I hope someday the gardens are brought back to their original glory, and I can rewrite this review.

Kind regards, A...

I'm living only 100 miles away from this gem and I did not know it existed! Beautiful garden! Let me share my experience of the trip. So we went in April when only a few plants / flowers are blowing outside. Ticket at the gate provides a day pass so you are able to leave and come back, just make sure to show them the receipt. Walk to the Sky Walk bridge is relatively long but interesting with informative posters along the way. Walk on the bridge is short but interesting. Park member greets everyone (counts too haha) and offering to take a picture, that's awesome bonus! Conservatory was amazing but bonsai garden was not out yet. All plants are in outstanding condition! Motivation to get to that point with my home plants one day haha. Ohh, trails, so many hiking and walking paths and I was soo unprepared for that! Make sure to have good walking shoes, water, and sun sprays bug sprays with you, would help a lot to stay for longer! The last but not the least - food! Take food, snacks, water. I didn't find food sold there or at least in April. So we had to leave to buy lunch and come back, but somehow forgot to do carry out, to have lunch at one of the picnic tables at the park. So I would suggest plan to spend a few hours there as it...