Grayling: the county seat and crossroads

Grayling is Crawford County’s only city and its county seat. It punches above its size as the main town for a big stretch of north-central Michigan. It sits right where I-75 crosses M-72, halfway up the Lower Peninsula. That makes it a natural stop and a regional hub for shopping, services, and healthcare. Munson Healthcare Grayling Hospital is a small community hospital that’s been here since 1911. It serves Crawford and the neighboring counties. Kirtland Community College’s main campus is in town, too.

The city grew up as a lumber town in the late 1800s. Michigan’s white-pine boom was at its peak then, and Grayling shipped out timber by the trainload. It’s named, like the county, for the Michigan grayling. That native fish once filled the Au Sable. Downtown runs along Michigan Avenue. The river and the Au Sable River Canoe Marathon’s starting line are a short walk away.

Grayling is also a four-season outdoors base. The paved Grayling Bicycle Turnpike links downtown to Hartwick Pines State Park in one direction. In the other, it reaches the Hanson Hills Recreation Area, with skiing, tubing, and mountain biking. Winters here are long and snowy. That’s good news if you like snowmobiling and cross-country skiing. And the rivers and state forest are at the doorstep year-round.