Arcadia: the bluffs, the dunes, and a famous flyer

Arcadia sits in the far northwest corner of the county, where high bluffs drop to Lake Michigan along the M-22 scenic route. It’s best known today for the Arcadia Bluffs Golf Course, a links-style course laid out on the bluff tops that regularly lands on lists of the best public courses in the country, with wide views of the lake.

Just north, straddling the Benzie County line, is Arcadia Dunes: the C.S. Mott Nature Preserve, the largest preserve held by the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, with miles of trails and the high overlook known as Old Baldy. Down in the valley, the Arcadia Marsh is one of the last Great Lakes coastal marshes in Michigan, with a boardwalk for birdwatching. Arcadia is also remembered as the childhood home of Harriet Quimby, who in 1911 became the first American woman to earn a pilot’s license and in 1912 the first woman to fly across the English Channel; a state historical marker marks the spot.

For buyers, Arcadia offers bluff-top and lake-view property, wooded lots near the preserve, and a quiet, scenic setting well off the beaten path. Homes here are on wells and septic (see the well-and-septic note).