The 'Icebox Of The Nation' Is A Tiny Michigan Gem With Year-Round Adventure, Dining, And Antique Shopping

Cities and nicknames go hand in hand. Paris is the "City of Light" because it was the first European city to adopt gas lighting in the early 1800s. The much newer "City of Angels" gets its very literal English nickname from its original Spanish name, Los Angeles ("The Angels"). And about 1,900 miles northeast of Los Angeles is a nickname loaded with as much idiosyncratic quirkiness as the village it belongs to: "Icebox of the Nation," Pellston, Michigan (population: about 800). Pellston sits near the northern tip of Michigan's Lower Peninsula, about a 3.5-hour drive from Grand Rapids. But it has three key essentials going for it: Scrumptious food, eccentric shopping, and proximity to nature.

Looking at a map, readers won't have a hard time guessing why Pellston is called the "Icebox of the Nation." It's cold — really, really cold. Pellston averages 165 days per year below freezing, thanks to being sandwiched between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron in a valley where cold air flows and settles. Locals and visitors can take this as a reason to stay inside and eat, or to venture into the woods or onto the lakes.

On the restaurant front, Pellston has local favorites like Dam Site Inn, complete with retro spinning chairs that look lifted from a 1950s sci-fi movie and a museum-looking section replete with antique porcelain and even a suit of armor. Those antiques might have come from one of Pellston's three downtown antique shops, all within a 5-minute walk of each other on Route 31: Spare Room Antiques, Antiques Art & Collectibles, and Vintage Goods. Just don't wander too far in winter unless you intend to do some cross-country skiing. 

It's best to imagine coming across Pellston while venturing into northern Michigan's copious outdoors spaces — the 88,000-acre Gaylord State Forest, somewhere along the coast of Lake Michigan at Wilderness State Park, or even all the way out to Beaver Island in Lake Michigan, a bed-and-breakfast and glamping hotspot. Scenic Route 31 takes you right past the colorful, eye-grabbing storefront of Antiques Art & Collectibles in Pellston, a perfect spot to pull over, poke around, and get some word-of-mouth advice about local eateries and things to do. And so begins your Pellston road trip adventure. 

Rather than being stuffed full of random bric-a-brac, Antiques Art & Collectibles is partitioned into curated and crafted spaces that feel like a fairytale grandmother's cottage. It's also right next to Vintage Goods, another antique store full of everything from cabinets to paintings to figurines to books. Both stores are next to Jolly Lama, a niche toy shop that sells goods for street performers, like juggling sticks and hacky sacks. These three are mere minutes away from Spare Room Antiques, which has a lot of rustic wooden furniture that looks lifted from an 1800s homestead.

After you're done antiquing, you might as well grab a bite to eat in town. In addition to Dam Site Inn, you can also try the highly-rated Beach's Up North Tavern, as full of burger-and-fry comfort food as it is alcohol, pool tables, and live music. Hoppies Landing, practically across the street from Beach's, looks like a cozy ski lodge. It's also inside Pellston's very own airport, the small and inviting Pellston Regional Airport (PLN). 

It'd be a shame to visit Pellston and bypass northern Michigan's natural beauty and expansive forest cover. The modest Pellston Pioneer Park is right in town, as is the Philip J. Braun Nature Preserve.  The latter is perfect for a short hike or bike in warmer weather and for cross-country skiing in winter, provided you remember that you're in the Icebox of the Nation and dress appropriately. In autumn, you'll have the added benefit of beholding some of Michigan's lovely shades of auburn, yellow, and red.  

Folks wanting to venture farther can pay a visit to any of the nearby smaller lakes, such as Douglas Lake (less than 10 minutes away), Burt Lake (10 minutes away), and Crooked Lake (less than 15 minutes away). Each of these — and many more — has its own nature preserve and public access point. Chaboiganing Nature Preserve on Burt Lake, for instance, is a largely flat expanse with widely spaced trees perfect in any season, especially for hiking and cross-country skiing.

Those going even farther from Pellston have access to more adventurous outdoor activities and little towns waiting to be discovered. Rogers City, about an hour east of Pellston, is a charming waterfront getaway featuring the lovely Purple Martin Lakeside Inn & Bird Sanctuary, perfect for couples of all ages. Nearly two hours away, the coastal town of Alpena, one of northeast Michigan's best base camps, offers tons of boating and watersports.