Things to Do in Jenison

When describing his approach to designing a golf course, renowned course architect Donald Ross said "a golf course should be subtly deceptive, rather than unduly penalizing," a philosophy he put to work in 1908, when he crafted the 18-hole course at The Highlands Golf Club. Measuring 6,519 yards from the tips, the course offers a fair test for golfers across the handicap spectrum while still supplying enough challenges to attract legendary golfers such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Ben Hogan, who played the course when it was a fixture on the Senior PGA Tour. Strategically placed bunkers and fairway-hugging tree lines that cast shadows resembling golfers' fears loom throughout the course, but its most memorable challenge awaits at the 14th hole—a long par 5 that doglegs left and ends with a forced carry over a pond and onto the green.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole course designed by Donald Ross
• Length of 6,519 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 71.5 from back tees
• Slope rating of 133 from back tees
• Five tee options
• Scorecard

Drenched 5K events soak participants in the name of good health, good fun, and raising money for local charities. Runners of all makes and models can skip monthly jogs through the neighborhood car wash to converge on 5-kilometer courses, which start out dry, but quickly become lively fetes fueled by H2O. Along the routes misters, sprinklers, and fire hoses activate as groups pass by. Spectators also do their worst, launching water balloons and spraying water weapons at runners from the sidelines. A final 75-foot water slide sends runners gliding across the finish line, where a festival stocked with refreshments, live entertainment, and other water-related activities greets them.

When Ed Dunneback founded his business in 1925, he didn’t have to rely on anything fancy to attract attention—just his milk cows and freshly harvested apples, strawberries, peaches, and pears. Today, third and fourth generations of Dunneback women carry on Ed's tradition at the same location. Despite the lack of dairy cows arguing about prohibition, not much has changed on the farm since the '20s; the property still produces the same fresh fruits it did some 80 years ago. Located inside a nearly century-old barn, the farm's bustling market slings seasonal produce, as does the bakery, where housemade donuts and pies bake to golden-brown fruition within ovens. Visitors can work up an appetite picking their own pumpkins or while navigating through an autumn corn maze, complete with trivia questions about pop culture, agriculture, and history.

As the sun dips below Coopersville Farm Museum and Event Center’s grain silo, local musicians gather in the high-ceilinged hall against the backdrop of patchwork quilts and antique farm tools. They sing gospel, country, and folk songs that have been passed down for generations. Events such as these are one facet of the museum’s mission to honor and uphold rural traditions. In addition to the monthly jam sessions, the 12,000-square-foot facility hosts quilting circles, line dancing, and other skill-swapping events. Curators spotlight the region’s agrarian past by recruiting antique-farming tools and folk art and freeing hopelessly lost scarecrows from corn mazes. In addition to shining a light on the region’s past, the museum strives to support current culture makers; The hall serves as a gallery space for local artists, and during the youth-led Kids’ Day local teens teach tykes creative skills.

Ascending for nearly 50 feet, the indoor climbing wall—proudly proclaimed as among the tallest in Western Michigan by Aim Fitness' team—presents an array of routes, each patterned with colored grips to indicate the level of difficulty. As climbers scale the vertical expanse, a freestanding boulder sits in the middle of the room, beckoning guests to climb its reduced height sans the support of a rope. This climbing room anchors Aim Fitness' 40,000 square feet of amenities, which encompass a strength-training area, aerobic studios, a five-lane, 25-yard lap pool lifeguarded by Aquaman, and a racquetball court. Instructors also lead an array of classes on these training grounds, such as Aqua Fit, boot camp, and yoga. To make going to the gym as convenient as possible, Aim also provides locker rooms, a children's playroom, and wireless Internet access.