Things to Do Near the Lavender Farm of Escanaba & Delta County, Michigan

The lavender farms

• Purple Lavender FarmLavender farm · Bark River

  By appointment only, July–September; U-pick visits booked online; small private events (50 or fewer) and photo shoots in the fields.

Best time to visit

Purple Lavender Farm books u-pick visits from July through September. Gladstone Berry Farm picks strawberries from July into early August, 8 a.m. to noon or until picked out, and Hall Farms in Rock opens about 20 acres of sunflowers in August while they bloom, 10 a.m. to sunset. The Sand Point Lighthouse is open Memorial Day weekend through September 1, with shorter afternoon hours in September, and the IXL museum in Hermansville is open Friday through Sunday from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day in 2026. The U.P. State Fair took over the Escanaba fairgrounds August 17–23, 2026, and the Ludington Park band shell has band concerts Wednesday evenings at 7:30 in summer.

Places to see nearby parks, trails, beaches and landmarks

• Sand Point Lighthouse🗼 Lighthouse · Escanaba · about 15 mi, 22 min drive

  Built in 1867 on Little Bay de Noc at the edge of Ludington Park; you can climb the tower, and the Coast Guard museum beside it shows a life ring from the cutter Escanaba.

  Memorial Day weekend–September 1, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.; September, 1–4 p.m. (Eastern)

• Delta County Historical Museum🏛️ Museum · Escanaba · about 15 mi, 22 min drive

  Next to the Sand Point Lighthouse, covering Native American history, early explorers and surveyors, logging, shipping and the railroad; the archives are open year-round for research.

  Memorial Day–Labor Day, daily 1–4 p.m.; volunteer-staffed, so call ahead

  $3 adults, $5 per family

• Ludington Park🏞️ Park · Escanaba · about 15 mi, 22 min drive

  About a mile of Escanaba's lakefront with a swimming beach and bathhouse, Aronson Island's accessible fishing pier and boat launch, bike paths, a playground and the Karas Memorial Band Shell.

  Band concerts Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. in summer

• William Bonifas Fine Arts Center🏛️ Museum · Escanaba · about 15 mi, 22 min drive

  Two art galleries, studios, a pottery workshop and a theater in a 1938 Romanesque building of golden Kasota stone, built as a parish school gym and auditorium. Barrier-free, with an elevator.

  Tuesday–Friday 10–5:30, Saturday 10–3

• Gladstone Beach (Van Cleve Park)🏖️ Beach · Gladstone · about 18 mi, 25 min drive

  Sandy beach on Little Bay de Noc with a water slide set in the shallows and a beach house with showers and restrooms.

  Best in July and August

• Days River Pathway🥾 Trail · Gladstone · about 20 mi, 28 min drive

  Nine miles of forest loops along the Days River northwest of Gladstone, with a view from a bluff and a wooden footbridge. Open to hikers, mountain bikers and horseback riders, and groomed for skiing in winter.

• IXL Historical Museum🏛️ Museum · Hermansville · about 17 mi, 22 min drive

  The 1881–82 office of the Wisconsin Land & Lumber Company, a pioneer of pre-cut maple flooring, kept with its original ledgers and office machines, plus a company house, railroad depot, blacksmith shop and 1910 caboose on the grounds.

  Memorial Day weekend–Labor Day, Friday–Sunday 12:30–4 p.m. (2026, Central Time)

  Admission by donation

• J.W. Wells State Park🌳 State park · Cedar River · about 40 mi, 50 min drive

  700 acres with 3 miles of Green Bay shoreline, a swim beach with a beach house, rustic cabins and the accessible Cedar River Trail; the Civilian Conservation Corps built many of its buildings in the 1930s and 1940s.

  Michigan Recreation Passport required for vehicle entry

Where to stop: farms, food and stays

• Gladstone Berry FarmStrawberry farm · Gladstone

  Pick-your-own and ready-picked strawberries on summer mornings, July into early August.

• Hall FarmsSunflower farm · Rock

  About 20 acres of sunflowers open to visitors in August while the fields are in bloom.

• Yooper Produce Farm and MarketU-pick farm · Bark River

  Chemical-free family farm in Bark River with high-tunnel vegetables, a small fruit orchard, pick-your-own gardens and a market from July to mid-October.

• Wilson Creek CafeRestaurant · Powers

  Farm-to-table comfort food and a case of fresh-baked desserts on US-2/41 in Powers.

A one-day plan

1. 10:00 AM
   Gladstone Berry Farm

   Pick strawberries for about an hour; the field closes at noon or when it is picked out.

2. 11:15 AM
   Purple Lavender Farm · about 30 min drive

   Your booked u-pick session, about an hour.

3. 12:30 PM
   Wilson Creek Cafe · about 15 min drive

   Lunch and a slice from the dessert case, about an hour. Powers is on Central Time (11:30 a.m. local).

4. 1:45 PM
   IXL Historical Museum · about 10 min drive

   Tour the lumber company office, depot and blacksmith shop, about an hour (opens 12:30 Central, 1:30 Eastern).

5. 3:15 PM
   Delta County Historical Museum · about 35 min drive

   County history exhibits, about 30 minutes before the 4 p.m. close.

6. 3:50 PM
   Sand Point Lighthouse · about 2 min drive

   Climb the 1867 tower and see the Coast Guard displays, about 40 minutes.

7. 4:45 PM
   Ludington Park · about 2 min drive

   Walk the lakefront path out to Aronson Island or swim at the beach.

🗺️ Plan this trip in the trip planner

Tips

• Purple Lavender Farm works by appointment only; book your u-pick time on its website before driving out.
• Powers and Hermansville are in Menominee County, which keeps Central Time, an hour behind Escanaba and Gladstone; check which time zone posted hours use.
• Gladstone Berry Farm picks from 8 a.m. until noon or until the field is picked out, so go early.
• The Delta County Historical Museum is run by volunteers; call 906-789-6790 to confirm it is open.
• J.W. Wells and other state parks need a Michigan Recreation Passport for vehicle entry.