ONE TANK TRIP

Small town pleasures await in Fennville, Mich.

September 04, 2010 12:00 am • By Jane Ammeson Times Correspondent

For your information

HOW TO GET THERE: Take Interstate 94 east into Michigan. Just north of Benton Harbor, taken I–196 North to Exit 34 to MI 89 East.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Call the Saugatuck/Douglas CVB at (269) 857–1701 or visitwww.saugatuck.com

YOU'LL LIKE: Paddle down the Kalamazoo River on either a 3- or 5-hour trip via Old Allegan Canoe. Much of the way winds its way through the Allegan State Forest, known for its serious geese population in the fall. The wide, slow moving Kalamazoo River is easily to paddle, 2722 Old Allegan Road, (269) 561–5481 or www.oldallegancanoe.com

KIDS WILL LIKE: Hitting the trail at Wild West Horseback Riding for a guided trail ride through the woods. Also horse drawn hay rides. Open year round, 2855 36th St., (269) 673–3539 or www.4horserides.com

AND DON'T MISS: Though its technically in Douglas which is just up Blue Star Highway, you don't want to miss The Summertime Market. Often on weekends Christine Ferris, owner of Christine Ferris Catering, serves samples of her salads including chicken pesto and egg salad, made from organic eggs sold there. Also outside is the produce area where signs tell not only the name of the local farms that provided the stacks of beets, carrots, sweet cherries, blueberries and more on display as well how many miles the food had to travel to get there. That's because all produce and most of the other products are produced within 30 miles of The Summertime Market with the exception of the soda pop and artisan waters, that come from the other side of the state. Inside there are grass-fed meats and wild game sausages, organic cheeses, vintage candy, gelato, natural honey and, bottles of milk from the Hilhof Dairy in Hersey, Mich.. The milk is pasteurized but not homogenized so the cream rises to the top. You can either skim off the cream and use it for coffee or shake the bottle. Located at The Bridge just north of Douglas on Blue Star Highway, (269) 887–8569 or www.summertimemarket.com

Fall is the perfect time to travel along the country roads bordered by jeweled colored trees to Fennville, Mich., a dot of a town so small that there's no stop light (not even a flashing one) and at least one of the side streets in the downtown turns to dirt just one block away.

But what it lacks in size, Fennville makes up for in charm, food and things to do.

Farm to table is one of the prevailing trends in food today and so begins the journey at Evergreen Lane Farm and Creamery where Cathy Halinski raises LaMancha goats who feed on thistle, rosemary, wild raspberries and colorful wildflowers to produce her delicious goat cheeses.

Visitors can stop at the farm located on a country road southeast of the downtown, pet the goats (they're as friendly as dogs) and buy Halinski's cheese or they can follow her cheese, so to speak, to Salt of the Earth, a rustic American eatery and bakery on Main Street in Fennville.

Here, Matt Pietsch, the executive chef, uses Evergreen Lane cheeses to create salads, entrées, desserts and toppings for wood-fired pizzas. Pietsch, though only 27, has quite a food pedigree. After leaving engineering school and eschewing dreams of being a roadie because he was into sound, he turned to cooking. He worked at the well-known Opus One in Detroit and helped opened Michael Symon's Roast, a very popular Detroit restaurant where the focus is on big cuts of meat.

Because of this background, Pietsch, who grew up in Muskegon and wanted to get back to this side of the state, doesn't just order Berkshire pork from a local farm already packaged, he has it delivered and cuts the meat himself.

In other words, Pietsch is a food purist and he loves the idea of using local – his menu even lists where many of the food items are from.

Food is also the appeal of Crane's Pie Pantry Restaurant and Bakery, a purposefully down home looking place with a 1920s pick–up truck parked in the front of the long slung wooden building. Known for its pies and other baked goods, Crane's has been family owned since they purchased the old Hutchins farm in 1916. Just down the road is Crane's Orchards – a great place to pick apples in the fall as well as take a hayride and cow train, find a way through the corn maze and enjoy the 3–D special effects barn.

Like its bigger neighbors, Saugatuck and Douglas, Fennville also has an art scene. Visit the Peachbelt Studio Gallery located in an old red brick school house dating back to 1867 and named back then after the plethora of peaches that grow in the orchards here.

On Oct. 2 and 3, follow Blue Star Highway as it winds its way parallel to Lake Michigan for the Blue Coast Artists 21st Fall Tour of the Studios, visiting such Fennville artists' galleries as Khnemy Studio, Lakeshore Textiles, Lake Effect Pottery and Green Fire Studios.

With children in tow, stop at the Children's Museum of Fennville located in the downtown. Garden enthusiasts will want to visit Wavecrest Nursery on Lakeshore Drive. Though it's a nursery, the plants are showcased in outdoor garden rooms that are perfect for wandering. Wavecrest is known for its large selection of all-season hollies and its gift shops are perfect not only for gardeners but those just looking for garden accent pieces and gifts.

Enjoy an educational wine tasting at Fenn Valley Vineyards and Wine Cellars, listen to performing arts recitals in the vintage gardens each Sunday, sample wine and take a fall tour of the vineyard.

Take a hike through the Allegan State Forest and if you happen to be around on the weekend of Oct. 8 to 10 be sure to check out the 26th Annual Goose Festival, celebrating the goose population in the forest.

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