Walloon Lake and Hemingway country

Walloon Lake, tucked into the hills on the eastern edge of the county, is one of Michigan’s deepest and clearest inland lakes — and the boyhood summer home of Ernest Hemingway. In 1899 his family built a cottage called Windemere on the shore, and young Ernest spent nearly every summer here until he was a young man, fishing, hunting, and roaming the woods. Those summers turned up again and again in his writing, especially the Nick Adams stories. Windemere still stands and is still owned by the Hemingway family; a state historical marker at Melrose Township Park tells the story.

Charlevoix County holds the southern and eastern shore of Walloon Lake, mostly in Bay and Melrose townships, with the small village of Walloon Lake at the foot of the lake. (The rest of the lake reaches north into Emmet County.) The water is famously clean and clear, the shoreline is dotted with century-old cottages, and the whole area has a quiet, upscale, old-summer-resort feel.

For buyers, Walloon Lake frontage is some of the most sought-after — and priciest — in northern Michigan, prized for the clear water and the literary history. As with any lake property, look closely at exactly where your frontage lies, whether access is private or shared, and the condition of any older septic system, since keeping this lake pristine is a point of local pride.