Romulus, MI Outdoor Activities

At Pine River Stables, experienced equestrians and instructors pair guests with patient, well-trained horses for lessons or scenic rides through more than 100 acres of rustic expanse. For more than 40 years, expert instructors have been teaching horsemanship and proper riding techniques. Trails weave throughout the land, leading riders over peaceful hills and meadows and alongside a seasonal creek that migrates south every winter to become a Florida beach rivulet.

Gerald and Elisabeth Blake established Blake Farms in 1946 with the help of their 13 children. In the 60-plus years and several generations since, Blake's has spread their operation to three locations across the metro Detroit area. More than 500 acres of orchard and farmland compose the family business, and during certain seasons, that land allows average citizens a chance to give their robotic fruit harvesters a rest and come pick their own apples, strawberries, peaches, and pumpkins. Blake's becomes especially busy with the arrival of autumn, when it hosts an annual fall festival, and Christmastime, when its U-Cut tree program lets families team up to chop down their own tannenbaum.

Capital City Skydiving's air-riding experts take first-time and experienced jumpers to the stratosphere for jumps above the scenic vistas of Southern Michigan. Tethered to clients, they guide tandem rides to facilitate first tastes of terminal velocity before coasting in for a soft landing. To accommodate licensed skydivers with a current reserve parachute, the staff guides planes over the business's own scenic landing zone so jumpers can take to the air on their own. Beginners who wish to become full-fledged divers can opt for the Accelerated Freefall program, in which aficionados teach the skills necessary to make solo jumps such as how to handle equipment or merge into goose traffic without a blinker.

A 6-inch perch strikes a baited minnow, and then a 26-inch walleye inhales them both. The boy landing this prize catch—who also happens to be a first-timer—reels as his teammates cheer so loudly that Captain Alan Maier isn't even sure that his handling tips are audible over the excitement. Once the fish reaches the boat side, the captain nets the walleye and encourages the boys—all members of his grandson's little league baseball team—to capture the moment with a picture.

Maier charters fishing excursions for perch and walleye so that anglers of all ages can have memories like these, which prompt Maier to recall all of the trips he had with his dad that ended with one of them saying, "let's catch just one more." Welcoming parties aboard his roomy Thompson Fisherman boat—measuring 27 feet long by 10 feet wide and equipped with a sun-shielding hardtop—the licensed captain launches from various docks in the area and then heads toward the western basin of Lake Erie. Trips furnish all equipment, including bait, ice, and coolers to hold catches. Guests are also welcome to bring their own rods, reels, and lures shaped like BLTs.

Since the first swing in 1972, Tamaron Country Club's course has been sending golfers down an idyllic path filled with rolling fairways, swaying trees, and impeccably maintained terrain. Greens superintendent Mike Kaminski obsesses over the upkeep of lush fairways and carpet-like greens, ensuring verdant beauty, true roll, and infinite sleeping spots for mid-round naps.

On the front nine, golfers start their round with a shorter par 5, presenting a green that's reachable in two. The next par 5 on the side is hole seven, which presents the longest hole on the course, made longer by out-of-bounds areas on the left and trees on the right that force some players to hit an iron or an oversize gavel off the tee.

Though the back nine is shorter than its predecessor, it makes up for its lack of length in deceptive lies and fewer birdie opportunities. Before signing scorecards and mailing them as postcards, players must first divide and conquer hole 18, a tricky par 4 that forces tee shots over or into a bowl-shaped depression that must be carried to reach the elevated green.

Tamaron Country Club houses an indoor golf simulator, where golfers can play virtual renditions of 38 world-famous courses. The high-tech apparatus makes a round possible even in inclement weather and removes many of the hassles of real golf, such as lugging a bag or getting out of quicksand bunkers.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 70 course
• Total length of 6,060 yards from the back tees
• Course rating of 67.7 from the back tees
• Course slope of 109 from the back tees
• Four sets of tees per hole