Ruby Williams captured Robin Lee Berry with her first mushroom of the season!It’s a new season now that the record snowfall has (almost) completely melted in the Petoskey Area. It’s time to put away the downhill and cross country skis, the snowshoes, sleds and snowboards.

So what’s next for outdoor fun?

How about hunting for the morel mushrooms that have begun to pop up? (Don’t forget the National Morel Mushroom Festival will be held in Boyne City from May 15 -18).

It’s also the perfect time to search for Petoskey Stones, Michigan’s state stone, which can be found along the shores of Little Traverse Bay.

The Donald Ross Course at Boyne Highlands in Harbor SpringsGet out your clubs! Golfers can take advantage of early season rates on the area’s 15 championship courses. Actually, from now through mid-October, this is the place to tee it up on courses from designers like Arthur Hills, Larry Mancour and Robert Trent Jones.

Not a duffer?

BOYNEMTBIKE2-200x300The Petoskey Area is also a bike rider’s paradise. Either bring your own, or rent a bike while you’re here. The Little Traverse Wheelway stretches from Charlevoix to Petoskey, through beautiful Bay Harbor, historic Bay View and into the quaint town of Harbor Springs. Boyne City’s Avalanche Preserve offers spectacular views from the top of its mountain trail and Boyne Mountain and Boyne Highlands have extensive mountain biking trails.  You can even catch a trail in Petoskey and ride to Alanson where you’ll find the famous Inland Waterway.

The Inland Waterway that begins in Alanson, takes boaters through a series of lakes and rivers, ultimately covering 38 miles and ending at Lake Huron. Boaters will also be in their glory on sparkling Little Traverse Bay, lovely Walloon Lake between Petoskey and Boyne City and on Lake Charlevoix – voted the second best lake in America by readers of USA Today. To make things easy, boat rentals are available in several locations.

Biking, golfing, boating – another new season of outdoor fun. Whether you stay in one of our full-service resorts, a hotel, condo or an historic inn, you’ll never be far from the fun and beauty that is the Petoskey Area.