MLive says: “Just west of Mount Pleasant on the Chippewa River, Deerfield Nature Park is a place where Isabella County residents come to have fun. The park offers eclectic recreation opportunities like swimming, disc golf, volleyball, hiking, sledding in the winter and more. You'll want to check out the artesian well, the covered bridge and the two swinging bridges at Deerfield. You can also enjoy rustic camping at 10 remote campsites here.”
February 23, 2020
Just a few miles outside of Mt. Pleasant is a gorgeous county park - totally under the radar! Deerfield Nature Park is home to a gorgeous natural area with miles of hiking trails, suspension bridges, the Chippewa River, remote hike-in campsites, and disc golf galore. It’s a pretty perfect spot.
After spending the morning hiking around Higgins Lake, coming to Deerfield was an equally refreshing breath of fresh air. We started on a short hiking loop called the Oak Ridge path - it followed a disc golf course and revealed some really beautiful views in the park.
The Oak Ridge Path was pretty short, about a half mile, so we moved the car to a different spot and found a trailhead that led to the southern portion of the park with the rest of the trail system. We walked along the Chippewa River and appreciated running water and sunshine in February. The trails are groomed for skiing and hiking, bordered with a gorgeous diversity of trees. Along our hike we even spotted insects - in February!
I personally was very excited about the suspension bridges, but they’re closed in the winter. We still hiked over to one to check them out - they were real suspension bridges, cables and all.
The park itself is a pretty gorgeous little spot - I’d definitely love to return and check out the remote campsites in the summer. The trails in the winter were perfectly empty and quiet though - finding ways to appreciate every season in Michigan is what keeps life interesting.
