In some lucky parts of the country, the weather is warm all year. Outdoor activities aren’t curtailed much during the seasons. Lucky for you folks! For the majority of us, however, summer is a great opportunity to fully enjoy the outdoors before the weather gets cold. Of course, there are outdoor activities year round, but the range of what you can do in 80 degree weather with many hours of sunshine in greater than what you can do in 15 degree weather with less sunshine!
With that in mind, we recently spent a day driving a few hours each way for some outdoor fun. In lieu of an overnight vacation, I’m focusing on activities that are within driving distance and seasonal. Anyway, we set out to go from Chicago to the Indiana/Michigan border for blueberries and the beach.
Blueberry Picking
Just as you cross the border into the southwestern tip of Michigan, there are a number of blueberry farms. There, we picked fresh berries! Coming from an urban area, it’s almost a novelty to pick fresh fruit and vegetables. Thing is, it’s educational for kids to see where their food actually comes from. In this case, I thought blueberry picking was a good choice because it was right in the heart of the short season, and they’re quite the healthy food!
Anyway, we had a blast going out in the field and picking blueberries. For my oldest child, it was fun being able to run around and hunt for the best blueberries, and filling up the bucket with as many as she could. For me, I was thinking about how tasty fresh picked berries would be, and how cheap they were:)
How cheap were they? Well, if you picked, they were just $1.40 per pound. What a deal! After we finished, we came out to nearly 2.5 pounds, totaling $3.45. As we were ready to pay, we discovered that you could buy berries that they had just picked for $1.90 per pound. So, we bought two more pounds. In total , we paid $7.25 for 4.5 pounds of blueberries! Compare that to a typical supermarket, where 4 pounds of blueberries might cost up to $40 all told. More than anything, it was a lot of fun.
The Beach
Then, following blueberry picking, we went to the beach. Some of you might be wondering, “what kind of beach can be in Michigan?”. Well, I’ve been to 47 of the 50 states, have seen quite a few areas, and think this particular beach is a hidden gem. The name is Warren Dunes State Park, you can google it for more information.
The warm season to enjoy the beach is probably just a few months, but it’s a nice secret. There is a huge stretch of soft, sandy beaches, about as good as you can get if you’re not on the coasts. Additionally, there are massive sand dunes adjacent to the coast. One reaches heights of 236 feet! We enjoyed the beach and got some great exercise climbing that massive dune. It’s quite the challenge climbing something when your feet are sinking in deep sand!
Lots of fun for anybody healthy enough to spend time outside. Total cost: $8. Yes, for just an $8 entrance fee for our vehicle, we enjoyed a great beach, sand dunes, Lake Michigan, and a fun day outside.
Overall Assessment
We spent $15.25 between the blueberries and the beach/dunes park. On top of that, we probably spent close to $25 in gas. Our food costs were no different than they would have been otherwise. So, for about $40, we had a great family day. We got to leave Chicago and go 2 states away for a totally different environment and great outdoor, summer fun.
Goes to show that fun doesn’t have to cost that much money. There are many times when we can have cheap fun. In summer, when we can comfortably spend time outdoors, there are many opportunities to do so. We just have to find them!
My Questions for You
What are your favorite ways to spend time outdoors and enjoy the summer, without breaking the bank?
Did you get a chance to have any fun getaways this summer? If you’re a Squirrelers reader, I’m guessing you found ways to make it affordable:) Please feel free to share.
We went on vacation last week. Rather than spending money on a hotel, we stayed with my in-laws who live 15 minutes from the beach. Plus, they’re really generous and feed us! We had a budget for our activities and stuck to that. It was a nice, frugal and suprisingly stress free vacation.
Jana – that’s great! Visiting the inlaws can, with many families, mean a low-cost vacation. Of course, it can also be stressful depending on the family. Great that you got the best of both worlds, frugal and stress free!
I remember the dunes from when I was a kid. My aunts, uncles, and cousins were from Chicago area so we would all get together there for a big picnic and swim in Lake Michigan. It was fun rolling down the big dunes. I always thought that the hang-gliders were interesting to watch but I think I would be afraid of the height. Sounds like a great time.
Cashflowmantra – ah, so you know about the dunes up in that area! Did you go to the Indiana Dunes or the ones in Michigan? Yes, it was a great time.
I love going to the beach. It’s about an hour away and probably will cost us around $20 in gas. This year we’ll skip going to the beach because I think the little guy to too small. It’s usually a bit colder at the beaches here, around 50-60 degrees year round. Next year, we’ll definitely go visit.
retirebyforty – yes, I like the beach too. I agree with your caution with the little one. Give him a few years, and he’ll have a blast! Just watch him every second of the time…
One of my favorite things to do in the summer/winter (no distinction, I live in southern California) is having lunch at the beach (Malibu). We go to a little grocery store that offers great sandwiches and salads. We get 2 fruit salads for less than $12 and eat it with the movie stars and celebrities. There is something about the beach that rejuvenates us.
krantcents – frugal glamor at the beach, I like your approach!
We bought a very nice old town canoe off craigslist for $150 last year and it’s already paid for itself in fun points. My youngest is 2.5 so he no longer wants to be in carriers, but is too young to keep up on his own two feet. Canoing has been a great compromise because it’s still active for the adults and the kids get to fish while we paddle. Speaking of fishing, I was also told a $10 fishing pole for a kid is a great way to spend the summer. We have loads of fishing gear, so we didn’t need to buy anything.
Mushroom picking in the fall is also good i you live in the right part of the country. It’s not as hard as you’d think.
First Gen – It’s really interesting to me how people can have so much fun outside in the summer and pay so little, yet many folks don’t take advantage of such opportunities. That seems like a pretty good deal for a very nice canoe. Have to say, I’ve only gone canoeing once, but it was a lot of fun. Great experience…and it was even here in suburban Chicago, proving that outdoor adventures can be found where and when you want to find them.
My mom owns (and lives on) a pick your own blueberry farm. So fun!
Ashley – that sounds like a very antioxidant-filled life:) Blueberry picking was fun. My daughter was so excited, but strangely enough I think I was equally excited!
My brother lives right by the Warren Dunes, and Lake Michigan is indeed beautiful there. Actually lake Michigan is beautiful everywhere. I am on the east side of Michigan, so we go to lake Huron quite often. However the sand is not as nice and it is a lot rockier on lake Huron.
We also go to a lot of science museums, especially when it is hot. You can buy an annual pass and the pass is accepted at museums all over the country.
Everyday Tips – so, you probably know that area a bit then. Not a secret to you obviously. Lake Michigan is really underrated, especially in the summer and fall. I’ve never gone to the Lake Huron coast, and don’t hear people talk about it….now I know why based on your assessment of the sand/rocks. Anyway, I’m sure it’s a nice day trip for you guys from the Detroit area. Speaking of Lake Michigan, what I’d like to do sometime is visit Sleeping Bear Dunes. Supposed to be pretty cool from what I’ve heard.
I love berry picking. My husband and I go every year and stock up for the winter. We usually pick 50-60 pounds. It is really relaxing to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air while picking some yummy treats.
Sounds like a fun getaway. And mmmm, blueberries! We pretty much stay inside from late May to early October because it’s very, VERY hot outside here. My favorite getaways involve the beach 🙂
I have family who live in Michigan and will send them a link to this post–not sure if they are aware of the beach or not.
We are in Houston, and so summertime you spend more time indoors than outdoors. Still, I walk/run up to the bayou near our home, we went to Galveston Beach for the day, spent a weekend at Lake Conroe in a little cottage that we split with two other people in our family, and are thinking of taking a bat tour!
You brought back memories of my parents taking us all to pick berries in the summer. We’d stop at wild berry bushes on the side of the road (in Washington state) and get all scratched up. However, we were victorious with fruit that my mom froze and we had all winter long!
Sounds like a great time! We get our blueberries at Leduc blueberries on the way to South Haven. Delicious! We got 40 lbs. worth to last a through the winter, though they probably won’t stretch all the way through winter. The only thing I hate about coming back from Michigan is the crazy drive back into Chicago!
Sand dunes in Michigan, I would have never guessed 🙂
Sounded like a great time there for 8 dollars!
I want to go up and check out Henry Ford’s Museum someday!
We’re in triple digits right now, so even in places where it’s warm, you can’t spend all year outside!
We did go up North for a couple weeks… it was frugal because my ticket and hotel were paid for (business expense– I would have had to go anyway for work) and we had $900 in vouchers for the rest of the family from when we volunteered to be bumped from a flight over Thanksgiving.
Picking fruit is a lot of fun. Last time I went to pick fruit we did strawberries.