The Allegan State Game Area and the great goose migration

West of the city of Allegan sits one of Michigan’s biggest pieces of public land: the Allegan State Game Area, about 50,000 acres of woods, wetlands, creeks, and small lakes that locals just call the Allegan Forest. The Kalamazoo River winds through the northern part, popular with paddlers, and there are miles of trails for hiking and horseback riding in summer and snowmobiling and cross-country skiing in winter, plus two rustic campgrounds with swimming.

The showstopper comes in fall, when huge flocks of Canada geese stop here on their migration — as many as a hundred thousand pass through, and tens of thousands can be in the area at once. The best place to watch them is the Fennville Farm Unit, on the southwest side, where you can take in the spectacle from the road. It’s also a popular spot for hunting and fishing in season.

If you’d like to visit: the Allegan State Game Area spreads across the townships west of Allegan, with a main entrance off M-89, and you can find maps, trail info, and the rules at michigan.gov/dnr.