Little Traverse Bay and Petoskey stones

Little Traverse Bay is the centerpiece of this corner of Michigan — a deep, clear arm of Lake Michigan with Petoskey on its south shore and Harbor Springs on its north, and miles of beach, bluff, and resort country in between. Boaters love it (it’s said to be the deepest natural harbor on Lake Michigan), and a paved trail, the Little Traverse Wheelway, runs right along the water connecting the towns. Sunsets over the bay are famous enough that an old newspaper line about a “million dollar sunset” is still a local slogan.

The bay is also the best place in the state to hunt for Petoskey stones — Michigan’s official state stone. They’re not really stones at all but fossilized coral from an ancient sea, with a honeycomb pattern that pops when the rock is wet. (The stone and the city share a name, from a respected 1800s Odawa landowner named Pet-O-Sega, “rays of the rising sun.”) Petoskey State Park, between the two cities, is a favorite hunting ground, and people comb the public beaches after every storm.

For buyers, anything on or near Little Traverse Bay is premium property — frontage is scarce and expensive, and even a water view carries a premium. As always with waterfront, check exactly where your lot meets the water, whether access is private or shared, and the condition of any older septic system, since the whole area works hard to keep the bay clean.