The Harbor Springs Visitors Guide

The Harbor Springs Area Chamber of Commerce is pleased to provide you with the Harbor Springs Visitors Guide, the premier guide to shopping, dining, and activities in the Harbor Springs area. It is filled with year ‘round information that can help you plan your time here.

The Chamber of Commerce is located with the Andrew Blackbird Museum in an historic building easily identified by the totem pole outside. During the summer months, you also can visit our information Gazebo on the waterfront.

We are experts in answering your questions about the Harbor Springs area. From where to play a round of golf, or even a round of disc golf, to the best bike paths, to a spot for a picnic dinner, we can help. Leave us a message if we’re not in the office or visit our website, www.harborspringschamber.com for up-to-date information on the area.

We thank you for visiting the Harbor Springs area and hope that our small town charm, natural beauty, and wonderful amenities will bring you back again.

Harbor Springs History

Harbor Springs has natural beauty that helps make us as special today as a visitor destination as it was generations ago. Our location on the water, a deep, natural harbor perfect for large passenger ships, was a draw for visitors in the late 1800s.

Today, our streets are lined with history. Period architecture has been restored in many locations and even new buildings have a Victorian touch. Our charming downtown business area hugs the waterfront and welcomes visitors as it has for more than 100 years.

Harbor Springs has a vibrant history. It has been a trading center, Native American community, a mission, a summer destination, and a year ‘round community. In 1691, Catholic missionaries began their work with the Odawa Indians. This area, from Harbor Springs to Good Hart, was known as L’Arbre Croche during the 1880s and was a thriving community. This was home to a large Native American population who supported themselves with agriculture, trapping, carpentry, fishing, tailoring, and shoemaking, to name a few.

The Village of Little Traverse was established in 1858 along the natural harbor. In 1862, a post office was established with William Fife as the first postmaster. Chief Andrew J. Blackbird was appointed postmaster in 1869 followed by Lorenzo Clark in 1877. In 1866, the original Emmet County courthouse was built which later became the Harbor Springs City Hall and today is the Harbor Springs History Museum.

Religious and business groups from around the Midwest traveled by passenger ship to enjoy Harbor Springs. Harbor Springs began to be known as a summer destination in the 1870s known as a recreational and health resort where socialites could escape the pollen, dust, and heat of the city. Boarding houses and hotels were built for the summer guests and the associations of Wequetonsing and Harbor Point were formed as resort communities.

The Little Traverse Bay and the natural harbor in Harbor Springs provided easy access to the steamships and passengers who came from around the Midwest. In 1882, the railroad arrived and guests could then travel to the area by ship or train. The Pointer boat ferried passengers to and from Harbor Springs to the summer resorts.

Ephraim Shay made his mark in Harbor Springs with the Hemlock Central, a narrow gauge railroad that hauled logs during the week and picnickers on the weekends to excursions at the lumber camps at Stutsmanville and Weimer’s Lake. By the 1920s, Harbor Springs was known as the ‘Naples of the North’ and 11 hotels greeted summer guests.

Many of the buildings that hold a place in Harbor Springs’ history are still in use today such as the Depot, Holy Childhood Church, Ottawa Stadium, and the History Museum. The restored Pointer boat carries passengers around the harbor in the summer and departs from the dock behind the Pier Restaurant.

Visitors return year after year to our charming community to enjoy Harbor Springs just as visitors did more than 100 years ago. The same spectacular beauty and resort hospitality that have brought people here for generations continues today.

Celebrating History

History has a home in Harbor Springs: the Harbor Springs History Museum. The restored building that was once City Hall and the first Emmet County Courthouse, now houses the new museum. Step inside to learn about the area’s first residents, the Odawa and explore the Local History exhibit that transports visitors through time. Stories of the first Catholic missionaries are followed by those of homesteaders, loggers, and resorters.

The History Museum looks at how the town and waterfront progressed, the development of the ski resorts, and displays a celebration of Harbor Springs’ traditions. In the Discovery Gallery, kids of all ages will be introduced to inventor Ephraim Shay, light keeper Elizabeth Whitney Williams, and postmaster Andrew Blackbird.

Visitors also will meet merchants from Harbor Springs’ early days and step inside a fish shanty for a fun look at wintertime activities. Throughout the exhibits, guided interactive displays allow youngsters to experience topics from Shay’s locomotive to the Odawa language.

The Harbor Springs History Museum is open Wednesdays-Saturdays during the summer, Fridays and Saturdays the rest of year. It is located on Main Street, across from the Harbor Springs Area Chamber of Commerce.

Walk Harbor Springs

Named a pedestrian-friendly community, Harbor Springs is the place for walkers of all ages. Walking is a way to enjoy Harbor Springs by strolling past our unique shops, along the waterfront, on the pier, or in the woods.

As you walk, you’ll find many places to sit and enjoy the views of summer. Benches throughout the downtown area and picnic tables along the waterfront and the beaches are the perfect place to view Harbor Springs. Lace up the walking shoes and stroll or stride through our great community.

The Great Outdoors

If you like the outdoor activities, then year ‘round, Harbor Springs is the place for you. Summers are known to be spectacular and our moderate weather free of high temperatures and humidity are one of the many reasons guests have been ‘summering’ here for more than a century.

Our summer days are enjoyable from dawn to dusk. Fabulous beaches, gorgeous sunsets lasting until after 10 p.m., Lake Michigan, and an abundance of outdoor activities make this area an ideal summer destination.

But summer is not our only season. Spring indeed springs from the frozen ground to turn the countryside into a brilliant green, perfect for hiking, biking, and morel mushroom hunting. Fall is a kaleidoscope of colors and fall activities can be an extension of summer. Beach days in October? You bet!

Winter is the quintessential Currier & Ives image complete with a decorated tree in the middle of Main Street. Our two area ski resorts, Boyne Highlands and Nub’s Nob, draw visitors from around the Midwest. Ample trails for cross country skiing, snow shoeing, and snow mobiling along with frozen lakes for ice fishing adds to the winter fun.

Outdoors? It is here and waiting for you in Harbor Springs.

Beach Days

Yes, we have beaches! Not many cities boast of beautiful beaches within their community. Harbor Springs has two! The city beach located near Zorn Park is complete with a changing house, rafts, and lifeguards. Tiny Zoll Street beach is dog friendly and often a launching spot for kayakers.

Within minutes of Harbor Springs are several fabulous beaches on Lake Michigan: Petoskey State Park, Middle Village, Cross Village, and Sturgeon Bay. Pack the sun tan lotion, a good book, and a beach towel and ‘beach it’ for the day

Biking for Everyone

From easy cruising back roads to rolling, climbing routes along Lake Michigan, with everything in between for families to fanatics sounds like the perfect setting for biking. And that is just what you’ll find in the Harbor Springs area. Biking amidst our stunning geography is quite an experience.

The Little Traverse Wheelway receives regional and national attention for the beauty that exists along this 26-mile long paved or board walk from Charlevoix to Harbor Springs. The non-motorized wheelway weaves from Charlevoix through Bay Shore, Bay Harbor, Petoskey, and historic Bay View on its way to Harbor Springs. Construction for most of last three miles from Pleasantview Road into Harbor Springs was completed in 2009 with one small stretch set for completion in 2010.

Mountain bikers love the North Country Trail. This 4,000 mile long trail runs from the East Coast to North Dakota with 38 miles of it north of Harbor Springs from Mackinaw City to Petoskey with woods, hills, streams, and vistas along the route.

Sailing

The natural harbor of Harbor Springs and the fantastic waters of Little Traverse Bay and Lake Michigan combine for spectacular sailing. The Little Traverse Yacht Club (LTYC) is 115 years old and is one of the older yacht clubs in the country. It hosts summer long sailing opportunities including NM racing. NM’s are sleek boats designed just for Northern Michigan, thus, the name NM, and they take to the water several times a week for racing.

LTYC hosts its annual regatta the last weekend in July where sailors from across the country come to compete in three days of activities. This year, during the regatta, Melges 32 boats from around the country will be racing for their U.S. National Championships. The following weekend, LTYC will host the National Championships for the Moth sailboats.

On the waterfront of LTYC you’ll find the Little Traverse Sailors. This not-for-profit sail school for children (adults, too!) is a summer fixture in Harbor Spring and has been teaching sailing for 55 years. For nine weeks each summer, young sailors take part in sailing ‘weeks’ complete with a picnic on Harbor Point on Wednesdays and racing on Fridays.

Tunnel of Trees

The Tunnel of Trees, the M-119 Heritage Route traveling from Harbor Springs to Cross Village, is a stunning display of northern hardwoods located very close to the roadway creating the feeling of traveling through a tunnel. The route is a favorite of Northern Michigan visitors because of its rolling terrain, stunning vistas, and dramatic turns and curves.

The scenic views along M-119 are among the most breathtaking outlooks of Lake Michigan in the state. Bicyclists love this route because it is challenging as well as gorgeous!

Snow Season

Let it snow is the mantra in Harbor Springs from November-March. This is the real thing; white, fluffy snow that coats the ground and is not even a distant relative to the gray, wet, snow that often appears in cities.

For snow skiers, our two ski resorts, Nub’s Nob and Boyne Highlands are each a playland plus. These two spectacular facilities, just five minutes from Harbor Springs, offer downhill and cross country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, apres activities, racing, and more.

Miles and miles of groomed trails near Harbor Springs are a snow mobiler’s delight. The annual Moose Jaw Safari takes snow mobilers from Harbor Springs to Larks Lake for a day of great fun and a steaming pot of bean soup awaiting the travelers.

Cross country skiers cherish the Loppet, a 27-year-old event where skiers traverse from Harbor Springs to Cross Village

If you are a summer visitor to Harbor Springs, you must return in the winter. Harbor Springs has a different kind of beauty in the winter, one that is not to be missed.

Shopping, Dining, and More

Strolling? We do it well in downtown Harbor Springs. Stroll through our quaint downtown district complete with a variety of shops, businesses, and restaurants. Our tree-lined shopping district is one of the prettiest in Michigan and has something for everyone—books, clothing, art, accessories, t-shirts, furniture, jewelry and more.

Downtown Harbor Springs has much to offer you. Dining in downtown can be an all day affair! From breakfast at Turkey’s, to lunch at Cornichons, coffee at Island Bean and Wooly Bugger, milkshakes at Mary Ellen’s, dinner at the New York or the Pier there is something for every taste. Uptown Harbor Springs is a great place, too, with Chang Cuisine and BC Pizza Harbor Springs.

If it’s a rainy day, visit the Harbor Springs Library, go bowling at Northern Lights Recreation Center, visit the Crooked Tree Arts Center in Petoskey, tour the new Harbor Springs History Museum or shop in Harbor Springs.

There is much to do in the Harbor Springs area. We’re glad you’re here!

To receive a free copy of the Visitors Guide, email: info@harborspringschamber.com

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