Rochester, MI Outdoor Activities

A nonprofit organization, Midwest Freefall Sport Parachute Club aims to instill a love for skydiving in each person who steps into its 17-place Jet-Prop Cessna Grand Caravan, which elevates jumpers to more than 13,000 feet above the southeast Michigan countryside. Tandem jumps allow thrill-seekers to harvest cotton candy from clouds as seasoned instructors take care of dive essentials, including parachute deployment. For those who want to learn more, seven levels of free-fall training transform novices into experienced jumpers who can take solo dives. Before their second jump, skydivers become members of Midwest's club, which hosts social gatherings that debate the merits of traveling down stairs by parachute. Midwest Freefall Sport Parachute Club embraces the standards and procedures established by the United States Parachute Association to help ensure safety during all of its dives.

Designed in 1929 by Michigan Golf Hall of Famer Wilfred Reid—a British immigrant who studied golf-equipment design under Tommy Armour's father, outdueled Gene Sarazen to win the 1924 Augusta Open, and crafted a multitude of courses on both sides of the Atlantic—Bald Mountain's championship golf course spans 6,624 yards of undulating, timber-lined fairways. Though sand traps are sparse throughout the round, the layout counters with obstacles including greenside swales, grassy thickets, and deranged windmills invading from the nearest mini-golf course. Well-manicured greens sit at the end of each hole, providing a fair, true roll for par-seeking putters.

Novice players may prefer Bald Mountain's nine-hole executive course, where seven par-3s ease beginners into the game or allow aces to boost the probability of netting an elusive hole-in-one. Bald Mountain also encompasses a grass-tee driving range, a practice green, and a banquet area that can host up to 250 people for bridal showers, graduation parties, or group therapy meetings for short-irons that feel like drivers on the inside.

Championship Course at a Glance:

• Designed by Wilfred Reid
• 18-hole, par-71 course
• Length of 6,624 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 71.5 from the farthest tees
• Slope rating of 121 from the farthest tees
• Three tee options
• Link to scorecard