What we’re about
Welcome to Explore the Coast - Southwest Michigan Sports, Outdoors, & Social Group. The purpose of this group is to give individuals/couples the opportunity to meet and connect with others with the same interests. Most events will be in Berrien and Van Buren Counties. We will be focusing on 3 areas: Sports will include: 1) Volleyball 2) Road Races: 5K, etc 3) Golf Outings 4) Watching Football 5) Etc. Outdoors will include: 1) Hiking 2) Camping 3) Canoeing 4) Cycling 5) Etc. Socials will include: 1) Dining 2) Festivals 3) Picnics 4) Comedy Clubs 5) Concerts 6) Game Nights 7) Wine Tastings 8) Etc. We have no membership dues. So why not join us and see what the SW Michigan have to offer. If you have an idea for an event, please email us. Tell a Friend!
Explore the Coast Meetup Group Spring Picnic
Join us for our Spring Picnic.
This will be a fun afternoon/evening of play bags/volleyball, wine/hard cider tastings and sitting around a campfire. There are rumors that S'mores (Vegan and Non-Vegan) are going to be made.
We will have a potluck on Saturday Evening. Hamburgers and Beyond Burgers will be provided. Please bring a dish to pass. We are also having a wine/cider tasting, please bring a bottle if you are interested in joining us.
We are planning to eat at 6:00.
Please bring a chair for sitting around the campfire.
We will also have cards and board games for you entertainment.
If you are interested, we will do a 1 mile hike around the property.
The address will be emailed a few days before the event. It is in Coloma, off of Hagar Shore (Exit 7 on I-196).
Are you interested in camping? Camping is available here for the weekend for just for one night. Sign up at: https://www.meetup.com/explore-the-coast-sw-michigan-sports-outdoors-social/events/307031164/
This is going be a great day.
Kevin
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Camping @ Allegan State Game Area, MI - Ely Lake CampgroundEly Lake Campgrounds - Allegan State Game Area, Fennville, MI
Allegan State Game Area, MI - Ely Lake Campground
Are you ready for a campfire? Here is a last minute camping trip to SW Michigan. You can get the sites when you get there. ($17 per night, It is self pay so bring exact change or a check.) We are trying to get sites from #31 to #41. You may come for 1 or 2 nights.
If interested, we will be hike 5.8 or 10.9 miles hike on Saturday around Swan Creek. For more information about the hike, click here.
We will be staying at Ely Lake Campgrounds on Individual Sites at Allegan State Game Area for 2 nights. Pit toilets only. No showers or flush toilets and no electricity. The campsites are $17 per night. ($8.50 if you are over 62 with ID, ?Make a copy of driver's license and place in envelope when you pay.) You can have 4 people, 2 tents, and 2 cars per site.
We are close to Fennville (8 miles), Allegan (12 miles), Saugatuck - on Lake Michigan (18 miles), and Holland - Tulip Fest is happening (22 miles).
Ely Lake Campgrounds:
Ely Lake Campground's Address: 5020 - 116th. Ave., Fennville, Michigan 49010 GPS: 42.533933, -85.829832
Campground Information, click here.
Campground Map, click here.About Allegan State Game Area:
Nearly 50,000 acres of family fun. Pitch your tent beside a cold-running stream or deep-woods pond and relish in the tranquility that surrounds you. One campgrounds with over 20 miles of hiking trails. Bird watchers can enjoy the spring and fall migrations of waterfowl, warblers and many other species. There are canoe routes, much of which passes through country little changed from the days when it was home to the Ottawa, Potawatomi and Chippewa Indians.
Hiking Trails Map, click here.
This is a great trip. I hope you can make it.
Kevin
- Hike Allegan SGA - Swan Creek (5.8 miles or 10.9 miles)Swan Creek Marsh , Allegan , MI
Hike Allegan SGA (State Game Area) - Swan Creek (5.8 miles or 10.9 miles)
We will start off with the South Swan Creek Loop. It is about 5.8 miles long. After that, you may quit or do the North Swan Creek Loop which is about another 5.1 miles.
We will meet at the trail head parking lot on 118th avenue just west of the bridge over Swan Creek (or just east of the Park Headquarters.)
The much more scenic route is to the south, where a 5.8-mile loop skirts Swan Creek Pond and then the creek to 116th Avenue. To the north is a 5-mile loop along the creek to the edge of Koopman Marsh. Although the area is not hilly, both trails follow the base of a river bluff at times and contain a surprising amount of up-and-down hiking. They also pass a number of marshes.
After the hike, we could head to Crane's Pie Pantry Restaurant & Winery?
About Southern Loop:
https://www.michigantrailmaps.com/member-detail/allegan-sga-south-swan-creek-loop/South Swan Creek Loop is best done during the off-season—either in early May when fiddleheads are popping through the forest floor and the flowering dogwood is in full bloom, or in the fall, when one can witness one of the largest migratory gatherings of waterfowl in the state.
About Nothern Loop:
https://www.michigantrailmaps.com/member-detail/allegan-sga-north-swan-creek-loop/Lightly used North Swan Creek trails are located on the north side of the 118th Avenue Bridge dam and form a 5.1-mile loop. The east side trail stays closer to the creek and involves more climbing as it skirts the bluffs. The west side of the loop remains mostly on the edge of the bluff and is an easier hike. In places the west side trail parallels two-tracks that doubles as a ski trail in the winter and can be used as an alternative route back to 118th Avenue. Ski trails are marked with blue blazes, the hiking trail with yellow blazes.
This is a great hike. I hope you can make it.
Kevin
- Spring Colors Hike @Fernwood then Eats/Drinks at River St. Joe BreweryFernwood Botanical Garden, Niles, MI
Spring Colors Hike @ Fernwood Botanical Garden then Eats/Drinks at River St. Joe Brewery
We will hike about 2 miles or so at Fernwood then head to River St. Joe of a bite and/or drinks (Optional).
General Admission: $10
We have a passes for us plus 5 to get into Fernwood for free.
About Fernwood Botanical Garden:
A favorite of all who love nature—flora and fauna, Fernwood Botanical Garden is situated on the St. Joseph River in Niles, Michigan, near Buchanan in picturesque Berrien County. Fernwood is only minutes from South Bend, Indiana, and Southwestern Michigan’s famous wine country and shore communities. Fernwood comprises 105 acres and protects at least 10 ecosystems and is a birder’s paradise. Visitors may enjoy natural areas with miles of walking and hiking trails, a reconstructed prairie, an arboretum, and cultivated public gardens that include an herb garden, Japanese garden, perennial border, rain garden, railway garden, nature adventure garden, hardy fern collection, and other special collections and gardens.
Fernwood Website: https://www.fernwoodbotanical.org/
About River St. Joe Brewery:
On a beautiful and rolling organic farm in Buchanan, Michigan, in the heart of Southwest Michigan, "River Saint Joe" is a unique grain-to-glass brewery; farm-to-table restaurant; and event, community, and learning venue, open for beer & food.
River St. Joe Brewery Website: https://www.riversaintjoe.com/
I hope you can make it.
Kevin
- Camping in SW MichiganSweet 16 Campground/Picnic Area, Coloma, MI
Camping in SW Michigan
Join us for a great weekend camping in SW Michigan. The campgrounds is Coloma, Michigan (I-196 and Hagar Road). The campfire will be raging all weekend.
Camping information:
We will be camping at a private campground between St. Joseph and South Haven. You may hike, paddle, or explore SW Michigan (There are many wineries, breweries, and distilleries in the area.). We are 13 miles from downtown St. Joseph and 13 miles from downtown South Haven. Don't feel like exploring, then hang out at the campsite for the day. We are 4 miles from a small beach on Lake Michigan that is dog friendly. It is a great place to watch the sunset.Other activities planned:
Friday evening, we will head to the beach on Lake Michigan (Hagar Park/Beach, 4 miles away) to see the sunset. Stop by a winery after? They have a band until 9:00.
Saturday morning, we will be doing a 4 mile hike at 10:00 am. (Ross Coastal Plain Marsh Preserve or Fernwood Botanical Garden).We will have a potluck on Saturday Evening. Hamburgers and Beyond Burgers will be provided. Please bring a dish to pass. We are also having a wine/cider tasting, please bring a bottle if you are interested in joining us.
It will be rustic tent camping only. It is a really nice area to camp. There are almost 2 miles of hiking trails on the property. Electricity/Showers are not available. There are porta-potties for you to use. Also, you will need to bring your own water.
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This is a prepaid event for camping.
How to get on the trip:
1. Add your name to the "Wait List"
2. Make a payment (information provided below)
3. After the payment is received, you will be marked as "Going"
4. See you at the campsite! :)
Price: $20 per person.
The price is per person and includes a camping spot for 2 nights as well as firewood.
Payment guarantees your spot.
Pay with Paypal, Zelle, Venmo at (708) 342-1164 You are not confirmed as going until you pay.
No refund unless the trip is cancelled.
The minimum number of people attending is 24 people.
-----------------The address will be provide a few days before the trip. It is in Coloma, Michigan (I-196 and Hagar Road Exit 7)
Campground Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560471052820
I hope you can make it.
Kevin
