The In-Between Season: Why Late August Might Be Northern Michigan’s Best-Kept Secret

This could be a terrific lifestyle/real-estate blog because it naturally showcases why someone would want to own a home or cabin here without sounding like an advertisement.

We can talk about warm lake days, cooler evenings, fewer summer crowds, roadside produce, late-summer fishing, ORV rides, campfires and the first anticipation of fall.

Then finish with something simple like: Some people come Up North for a season. Others eventually decide they never want to leave.

🗞️ Editor’s Desk — What’s Happening Up North

🎣 The Little Manistee salmon story is beginning. This is a great one for us because it is practically in our backyard. The Michigan DNR says the Little Manistee River Weir is normally installed around August 15 for the fall salmon run and remains in place until roughly November 15. Chinook egg collection generally occurs during the first two weeks of October.

Michigan DNR — Little Manistee River Weir

🏈 Fall sports are waking up. In nearby Manistee, the fall high-school sports calendar begins this week: girls golf starts August 17, volleyball August 19, boys soccer August 20 and cross-country August 22, with football beginning August 28. That’s a good signal for our Journal calendar too—Friday Night Lights / Small-Town Football deserves its own upcoming marquee.

🦌 Hunting season is getting closer. This is especially important for our real-estate audience because recreational and hunting properties are such a big part of our market. Michigan’s early antlerless firearm season is September 12–13, archery deer season begins October 1, and regular firearm deer season runs November 15–30. The Baldwin bear hunt also begins September 12.

Michigan DNR — 2026 Hunting Season Calendar