Union Pier, Michigan. Fall should be a really nice time to visit. Quiet and uncrowded because it is more of a summer vacation/resort area. Many quaint, restored bed and breakfast inns to stay at. Some have views of the lake. Many areas are woodsy (at least the last time I was there), so you may want to look for a place with hiking trails.

A little further north in Sawyer is a state park. We just call it Tower Hill. A huge sand dune that you walk up, and run down. At least that's what we did when I was a kid.

Thanks so much for the info!
Cathleen

If you are planning on visiting the Upper Peninsula, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is stunning! Lots of great hiking (I love to hike too!) Tahquemonen Falls is beautiful as well as close by. I would say Pictured Rocks is about a 2-3 hour drive from Mackinac Island (you will not be disappointed with the Island, also lovely!) but it's been a few years since I've been there. Also, Traverse City is a nice place to visit, my favorite bed and breakfast is in Sutton's Bay, Black Star Farms Inn.

I am a native Michigander, I live in the Detroit area. Michigan is a great state to live in and visit (even though we did just have an ice storm in April yesterday!!)

No one has yet covered Illinois possibilities for you. I grew up in Southern Illinois and it is unlike the rest of the state. You probably won't want to drive that far, but it would be very pretty that time of the year and especially nice since you like nature and hiking. Lots of places for that in the hills of the Shawnee National Forest.

Chicago is a wonderful city. The Art Institute is one of the country's finest art museums. There's also some wonderful architecture in Chicago. My daugher lives in Chicago and recently spent a weekend in Galena. If you want something more quaint than the hustle-bustle of the city, you might check it out.

If you are willing to drive to Springfield, the Lincoln home and other sites are interesting for any history lover.
Driving across Illinois and that part of the country you will understand the richness of our agricultural wealth.

If you will be going to the Detroit area, Check out Greenfield Village. Loaded with history. Plan on a full day.
Ron

Thanks - great suggestions! We are still planning - have our plane tickets but need to make hotel reservations soon.
Cathleen

Indeed, if you are going to Chicago, you are in for a treat. That in itself is a thread of its own. I second the visit to the Art Institute and the architecture. We have incredible photos of our last trip there.

Window shop on the Miracle Mile (Michigan St.). I'm not a shopper, but this is a wonderful place. There's also the Museum of Science and Industry--fabulous. Be sure to eat at Rick Bayless's restaurant, Frontera Grill. It's in my top five picks of wonderful food/dining. Casual dress too!

Sounds like a great trip. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time!

If you go to the Pictured Rocks National Sea Shore, take time to go on the sunken ship boat tour too. You will see 3 or 4 sunken ships, and it is well worth the money, and time. Another favorite is a little farther west and that is a copper mine tour just north of Houghton Michigan. They say that more money was mined out of the copper country than was mined out of Califoria's gold rush! The tour takes you into the mine about 300 feet below ground level, and its very interseting.
Bill

Follow up on Greenfield Village- there was an article in Sunday's Detroit News about all the improvements done since they closed it last September. It's set to re-open in June.

Also, if you are in Detroit, the Detroit Institute of Arts is really a world class museum and the Science Center has been recently renovated, although I haven't been lately (on my "to do" list for this summer).

Thanks all - we are definitely staying in Chicago, visiting Greenfield Village and Springfield - a little afraid that Macinaw may be too cold for us - have to do some research on that one. Great suggestions.
Cathleen

Are you planning on crossing the border into Canada at all? If you are a theatre lover or like quaint shops, check out Stratford, Ontario (www.stratfordfestival.ca). It's an easy two and a half hour drive from Detroit. Great shops, restaurants and well over a hundred bed and breakfasts, every price range imaginable.

The Festival centers around Shakespeare, but offers other plays as well (this year's program includes GiGi, Hunchback of Notre Dame, the King and I, Present Laughter, to name a few, plus Taming of the Shrew (starring Seana McKenna as Kate, she is incredible!), Love's Labour Lost and Pericles). Tickets aren't cheap, but the productions are world class and worth every penny! A group of my girlfriends and I go every year and we have spotted famous actors in the audience on a few occasions.

Even if you don't catch a play, it's a very lovely town with a nice park, complete with swans, footbridges and gardens.

I visited Macinac Island and the U.P. in late September and we had lovely warm weather. Just needed a sweater at night. The U.P. was a little cooler but still lovely, not really too cold, it wasn't winter yet!

Check out the town of Leland on Lake Leelanau. Very pretty small town atmosphere, nice B & B's, restaurants, etc. Also I'd go to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park.

In Chicago, you should do the architectural river cruise.