Michigan
Land of Hiawatha
Land of Hiawatha
| Michigan, home to lapping waves, sand dunes, and white pine forests, is a year-round playground. In the summer, its shores and inland lakes made excellent boating and fishing spots. Bird watchers can spy crossbills, falcons, songbirds, and eagles. Orchids and trilliums line the woods, alongside native mushrooms, aspen, and birch. In the winter, ample snow-cover provides a thick blanket for skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and sledding. | ||||
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| Four separate glacial icesheets scoured out the great lakes basins over 11,000 years ago, creating the borders of present-day Michigan. The state is edged by four of the Great Lakes: on the north by Superior, the west by Michigan, and the east by Huron, and the southeast by Erie. The rugged Upper Peninsula, adjoined on the west to Wisconsin, is full of forests and swamps. Look for moose, wolves, deer, and bobcats, waterfowl, and shoreline trails. | ||||
| The Lower Peninsula is shaped like a mitten, including the "thumb" that edges Lake Huron. Sand dunes, waterfalls, and wildlife characterize this region, which is also home to the big cities of Detroit, Grand Rapids, and the capital, Lansing. Look for black bears, deer, and snowshoe hares at parks in this southern part of the state, or relax along a lakeshore and let your cares drift away in the land of Hiawatha. |