My Favorite Places: Kensington Metro Park

 

There's nothing like a good park system in any community.  Fortunately, for those living accessible to Oakland County, MI we have a fabulous one!

Part of the Huron-Clinton Metroparks System, Kensington Metropark is located in the city of Milford, right off of I-96.

The park boast two beaches, over 20 miles of trails to hike, bike or blade; boating, fishing, a petting farm, nature center, golfing, disc golf, a water park and hayrides at the farm.  The park also hosts year-round fun with its winter sport activities available in the form of sledding, ice-skating, ice-fishing and cross-country skiing.

$25 for an annual vehicle pass makes year-round fun easily affordable. (Day passes also available for $5 per carload.)  The Metro-Park system is not included in the state park recreation pass on your vehicle's license plate, so be prepared to pay admission at the gate.  Additional fees are also required for boats and launch fees. Click here for all admission pricing information.

Here are a few of our favorite ways to spend a day here:

Boat rentals: There's a wide variety of options to choose from, ranging from paddle boats to canoes to rowboats to kayaks at very reasonable rates per hour. Click here for pricing information. Boaters are free to explore the lakes as well as any of the small islands scattered within them. My nephews love paddling to an island to collect shells, rocks and hatched turtle eggs. Just don't forget to bring cash! Boat rentals are cash only with a $20 deposit due per vessel. (Valid driver's license also required.)

Not in the mood to row?  The lake provides other fun too.

Take a relaxing pontoon ride around Kent Lake on the Island Queen. Allow 45-60 minutes per tour. For pricing information, click here.

Practice skipping rocks in the sun or shade on any of the several miles of bordering trails.  The trails provide several spots to sit, rest and take in some nature and boat-watching.

Take a swim...

...or a slide... 

...or a spray!  

Kensington has two beaches, Maple Beach and Martindale Beach. Note: Maple Beach is only open for the 4th of July holiday in 2013, but Martindale Beach and its Splash 'n' Blast zone are open summer-long. Beach access is free once you've entered the park; however, Splash 'n' Blast has an additional entrance fee of $5/adult and $4 for children and seniors.  Also note: Neither beach has lifeguards on duty at any time. You are responsible for your own children, so don't fall asleep in the sand without a second guardian close by (and conscious!)

Lake frozen over?  During safe conditions, feel free to skate (with or without blades!), start a pick-up hockey game or ice-fish.  Pay close attention to park signage to identify safe conditions.  And, heaven forbid, if needed there are several ice rescue stations within the shores of the park's lake system.  Take note of the nearest one before venturing out on any frozen water.

The park is home to several families of gorgeous sandhill cranes.

The Nature Center: The park's nature center has about 7 miles of its own hiking trails, winding through some of the park's most beautiful woodlands, wetlands and meadows.  The nature center  building itself is a fun stop for children of all ages. They'll love seeing the live turtle, snake and bee displays.  (Note: This is also good stop for clean restrooms!)  The nature center's trail offer what may be my favorite park feature. The wild songbirds who are more than willing to eat a snack right out of your hand!  Hand-feeding is allowed by the park (though note, only the small songbirds that land in your hand may be fed.) Bringing your own supply of seeds and nuts is up to you. Feed is not supplied by the park.

The birds are especially grateful to visitors' treats during the cold winter months.

The Petting Farm: To avoid having the backside of your seat kicked for the entire drive home, be sure to stop by the petting farm before leaving the park for the day.  Once a child lays eyes on any of the Farm Center signs and has learned of its existence, you will not be forgiven if you miss stopping in for a few minutes, at the very least.  The farm is located near the Milford Road park entrance and is home to several sheep, goats, cows, hogs, horses, ducks, geese and turkeys.  The baby barn is houses a constant rotation of the farm's newborns.  There is also a snack shop, open only during the peak season, providing your best chance to grab an ice cream, pop, hot dog, pizza slice, nacho or other such treat within the park.  The farm also provides horse and tractor-pulled hayrides throughout the better part of the year for additional cost.

There's plenty more to do and see at Kensington Metropark.  For a full list of park details, including  shelter and classroom rentals, visit the park's official website.  Michigan has alot of nature to love, and Kensington's a great introduction to anyone living in the metro area.  Hope to see you there!

Down Wit the Farm

I picked up a new read last night and was so excited to get started on it!  I'm a sucker for "city folk relocating to farm" memoirs.  (See also, It Takes a Village Idiot, by Jim Mullen and of course The Pioneer Woman http://thepioneerwoman.com/)  They all seem to follow the same script.  But I, for some reason, never seem to care. 

These usually start out in the "big city" with a high-powered/high-tech/high-paying job that the writer will begin to feel unfulfilled with by the end of the first chapter.

A weekend trip to the country is what generally begins the inner stirrings.  One half of the married couple will suddenly resign from their high-paced occupation and suggest the permanent move to the other.  There's usually one party involved that takes a little more persuading.  Sometimes there are also children involved.

Most often the writer is capable of easily finding a home in the rural town of their choice and is easily able to unload their prior real estate.  There might be a quirky country-bumpkin realtor involved, but it's always a breezy transaction nonetheless.  New job searches are never mentioned.  There seems to be an abundance of cash flow in these books.  (Of this I am jealous.)

The first week in their new digs is usually the most entertaining.  The new residents never know how to repair their new houses' quirks, who in town they can trust (that answer eventually ending up to be "everyone!"), when the small town stores' hours of operations are or where to find a decent bagel.  There's usually the same (shocking!) discovery of oddly contrasting items being sold in same shop.  Tractor wheels and hairspray.  Fishing tackle and linen table cloths.  Hunting  bows and cashmere sweaters.  You get it...

The remaining chapters will always involve daffy new neighbors, farm animals running amok, unexpected down home hospitality, a bird/bat/rodent/snake found alive somewhere loose in the house and eventually a gradual adjustment to slower paced living and new found familial closeness.

I think I'm a closet city-to-farmer wannabe.  My paternal grandparents lived on a farm while I was growing up and visiting their place was always an adventure.  I loved running through the cornfields and "slopping" the pigs the best!  But, daydreaming aside, I don't think I could end up permanently toughing it out.

Every weekend trip to Amish country, for me, is a full-on experience of relaxing and unwinding.  The steady sound of horse buggies clip-clopping through the streets always causes my mind to wander for a bit.  It's such a different lifestyle in comparison to my home in metro-Detroit.  (The newscast on my last visit to Amish Indiana amused us with its innocence. The most shocking police reports on that particular weekend's broadcast were 1. Someone rudely shoving into another with a box at the local post office.  And, 2. a drunken man found wandering in the street until some kind folks stopped him---worrying for his safety--and called to procure him a safe ride home.)  But, in the end, these getaways always end with me pining for a grease spout attached somewhere to my body to drain my arteries and pores with.  The fantasy always dies with me realizing that I miss my local Target, I require more dining options and I don't really care to live in a house that's forever scented of onions and manure.

Poor me.  I love farm animals so much too.  I'm not squeamish at all about squeezing an udder.  I don't squeal in horror when a hog rubs its cute muddy nose up on me.  I just keep very different hours than these creatures.  They wouldn't want me as an owner.  And, I'd have the worst time trying to eventually eat them.

I do want a mule however.  Not of the equestrian variety, but one of those vehicles you see farmers zipping across the fields on.  Whizzing around from the house to the barn and then to go check on the cattle with.  They look like a work vehicle, but are secretly ATVs.  You know, these things:

I can easily picture myself with a mule-full of nieces and nephews (and possibly cats) cruising around the meadowy terrain. Stopping to pick berries and flowers along the property line and then chasing down the pesky fox that's been terrorizing the chickens.

But, mules and relaxing clip-clops aside, I guess I'm glad to live near the city.  Yeah, I get burnt out in my job too.  And, some days there are too many sirens in the background to hear the tea kettle signal.  But, I have convenience at my fingertips and tourist attractions within a half-hour's drive.  On those days I long for the country, I can always take a short drive to it.  Or, even easier yet, pick up a book!