The tip of the Thumb

Port Austin sits right at the tip of Michigan’s Thumb, where the main highway runs out and Lake Huron opens up on three sides. It’s a small, walkable resort town that fills up in summer with people coming for the beaches, the sunsets, the big Saturday farmers market, and the fishing.

The local landmark is Turnip Rock — a strange little tree-topped rock formation, skinny at the bottom and wide on top, sitting in the shallows just off the shore. You can’t drive or walk to it (the shoreline is private), so the way people see it is by kayak, paddling out from town along the coast. It’s a few hours round trip and only worth doing when Lake Huron is calm, but it’s become one of the most photographed spots in the state. Just offshore you can also spot the old Port Austin Reef Lighthouse.