Waterlandliving.com

Long Lake is located in Ionia County’s Orleans Township, two miles west of M 66 and eight miles north of the city limits of Ionia. Long Lake contains some 356 areas of surface waters, with maximum depths of 57 deep.

Fishermen report catches of Bluegill, Black Crappie, Catfish, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch and Pumpkinseed.

The DNR maintains a public access site on Long Lake Road, on the southwestern edge of the lake, just east of Whitcomb’s Lakeshore Party Store and Deli, where you can pick up all of your supplies for the fishing trip or the weekend.

Long Lake is a very common name for lakes in Michigan. Over twenty five lakes in Michigan share the name and even more when you count the derivatives of the name. You will find Little Long Lake (I find 6 lakes with this name); along with Upper Long Lake and Lower Long Lake, The names of many lakes that were formerly Long Lake have been changed to have an individual identity.

Some of the Long Lakes were obliviously named for their lengths; some were named for unknown reasons because the length was not a consideration.

Other Long Lakes can be found in the following other Michigan counties: Alger, Alpena, Antrim, Baraga, Barry, Benzie, Cass, Cheboygan, Clare, Grand Traverse, Genesee, Hillsdale, Ionia, Iosco, Kalamazoo, Kalkaska, Kent, Livingston, Mason, Missaukee, Montmorency, Newaygo, Oakland, Presque Isle, and St. Joseph.

Take time to visit a Long Lake near you soon!

Tupper Lake is located in Odessa Township in southern Ionia County.

Located just outside of the village of Lake Odessa, Tupper Lake is a 97 acre lake with reported depths of 37 feet.

Tupper Creek flows into the lake and flows into nearby nearby  Jordan Lake.

Tupper Lake is a private Michigan lake with no known public access. The fortunate lakefront residents of Tupper Lake are mainly year round residents.

Sessions Lake is located in the center of the Ionia State Recreation Area. Located in Ionia County at the corner of David Highway and Jordan Lake Road, Sessions Lake is only 3 ½ miles north of exit 64, off I96.

Developed in 1983, this 4500 acre state park has something for everyone with it’s lightly rolling terrain and a nice mix of open land, hardwoods and pine plantations. The centerpiece of the park is the 140 acre Sessions Lake with depths of 40 feet. This wonderful manmade lake was stocked with rainbow trout, brown trout, catfish, bluegill, crappies, walleye, largemouth bass and small mouth bass. The no wake lake is just perfect for the serious fisherman. A nice paved boat launch with plenty of parking and vault style toilet is located on the south end of the lake.

All kinds of trails are found in this park. A wooded lake trail of 3.65 miles circles around the lake, crossing streams and thru the woods, making it perfect for hiking or cross-country skiing in the winter months. There are also designated snowmobile trails when there are four or more inches of snow on the ground.

There are fifteen miles of equestrian trails, complemented by an equestrian campground consisting of 49 sites with electric. Horses are allowed only on the designated fifteen miles of trails. A second campground is found within the area with 100 sites with electric, complete with a modern toilet/shower building.

For the mountain biker, there are 9 miles of trails between Riverside Drive and the riverfront of the Grand River. And a favorite of mine, a dog trial area, that has become very popular with regional clubs.

Have you ever seen a sign and thought “What’s up with that”? Of course you have. I have driven by this particular sign in western Ionia County along Grand River Drive for the last twenty years. This time I decided to stop and investigate.

The Michigan historic sign states: “Here on old US 16 in Boston Township, Ionia County, the first picnic table along a highway right-of-way was placed in 1929 through the initiative of Allan Williams, county engineer. The table was built of salvage planks formerly used for guardrails. The idea immediately caught on and was adopted by the State Highway Department. The Ionia County Road Commission made the state’s tables until the work became too great. The roadside table became an emblem of Michigan’s hospitality, one which has widely emulated by states the nation over”

It’s interesting; when I visited, there was no roadside table there.

Located on the southern Ionia County line lays a wonderful small Michigan town. Lake Odessa lies along the northern shore of Jordan Lake. Nearby are Tupper Lake and the popular Morrison Lake.

Founded in the 1800’s, Lake Odessa was named for the city of Odessa in the Ukraine by one of the town’s founders who had an interest in the Ukraine and the sincere desire to have a distinctive name for the village.  Lake Odessa is proud of their history, as displayed in the Lake Odessa museum located in the historic train depot.

The village’s slogan is “Welcome to our Friendly Port”. It is evidenced by a very friendly main street, featuring many sharp, and renovated store fronts. The  homes well kept homes lining the streets make this community an all Michigan community.

Lake Odessa is home to Cargill Kitchen Solutions, formerly Sunny Fresh Foods, a company making processed egg products. It is also home to Twin City foods, a processor of vegetables.

Lake Odessa is large enough to have a Mc Donald’s, but small enough not to lose the small town character. It is located only 6 miles south of exit 64 off I96.  

Jordan Lake is located on the southern edge of the village of Lake Odessa. Straddling the Barry County and Ionia County lines, Jordan Lake is a manmade lake where Tupper Creek flows into it from Tupper Lake. Out of Jordan Lake, the Little Thornapple River flows thru Barry County.

Jordan Lake boasts of 430 acres with recorded depths of 58 feet deep. The lake has an active lake owners association.

On the north side of Jordan Lake, the village of Lake Odessa maintains a small village pocket park at the corner of Jordan Lake Ave. and Virginia Street. The park boasts a sandy swimming beach and changing rooms. And, although it might be a bit chilly to go swimming this time of year, the view of this beautiful Michigan lake from the park would make for a very worthwhile trip during the fall season.

The Michigan DNR maintains a public boat launch at the end of Tasker Road.  The site consists of a paved boat launch, vault style toilet and parking for twenty plus cars.

Most of us have an image of Pleasantville tucked away somewhere in our minds.

Remember Pleasantville from your first grade reader—that idyllic community of gracious lawns, a sunlit body of water, and a perennially happy neighborhood where John and Jean romped with Spot, their dog? Your introductory reader may have used different names, but you know the town, you know the kids, and surely you remember good old Spot. (See Spot run. Funny, funny Spot!)

There are views in Portland, Michigan, that I’d swear come right from Pleasantville. Not, mind you, that the entire town is the stuff of my old elementary school reader, but parts of it catch at something inside  me and sweep me back to that long-ago, mythical setting on Pleasant Street. A view from across the river at a picture- book yard…the chatter of softball players and spectators of every age (Portland is the ball-playingest community I’ve ever seen!)…a beautifully conceived system of paved trails, complete with a couple of renovated railroad bridges, that hug the banks of two rivers…

Walk those trails, and, trust me, you’ll find yourself in Pleasantville.

Until you get to Duke’s Cafe.

Duke’s Cafe is not Pleasantville—the food has too much attitude. But Duke’s is most definitely Portland.

Situated at the confluence of the Looking Glass and Grand Rivers, Duke’s is a destination place if you love Cajun cooking. We are talking here of unapologetic bayou food—of rip-your-lips-off gumbo, unrepentant andouille sausage, and eye-popping jambalaya that takes no prisoners and feels no remorse. This is stuff you have to kill twice and then drown with a Killian’s or a frosty glass of ice tea.

Of course, if you prefer less drama in your meal, Duke’s offers plenty of milder, more traditional fare. Whatever your taste, the porch is the place to kick back and enjoy your dinner on a clear, mellow evening in June, with the Grand River flowing by on one side and the Looking Glass on the other.

Afterwards, take a stroll down the river walk, stop and watch a few innings of one of the ball games, and then top off your expedition with a trip to the ice cream shop just across the bridge from Duke’s. Grab a cone or a tin roof sundae, sit in the shade on the porch, watch the river glide past you, and listen to the chatter of voices drifting across the water. You can’t find a more pleasant way to conclude a lazy summer evening.

But then, what would you expect? You’re in Pleasantville.

Recently while I was driving down an unassuming gravel road just south of Smyrna in Ionia County, I came upon this gem of a bridge.

The fourteen foot wide Whites Bridge on Whites Bridge Road spans 120 feet over the Flat River. Built in 1870, it is actually the third bridge on this site. It was built at a reported cost of $1,700.00, and other than some siding repairs and cedar shingle replacement, the bridge remains intact.

This beautiful bridge is one of only three historical covered bridges in Michigan that you can still drive across.