Imagine the retreat you’ve always dreamed of creating on this remarkable 80-acre sanctuary—a place where you can wake up each morning to hike trails through rolling forest beneath a cathedral canopy of oaks, past pocket wetlands, and along a cold-water stream. The infamous caves for which Cave Creek is named are tucked along the northern banks of this unique property.

For those who love the outdoors, this is a nature lover’s and hunter’s dream. Located on a State-designated Natural Beauty Road, it is just one-half mile from the Fish Lake Unit of the Barry State Game Area and more than 22,000 acres of land protected by the Michigan DNR. With fiber optic internet available, this is the perfect setting for remote work while still offering an easy commute to Grand Rapids (45 minutes) or Kalamazoo (35 minutes). The natural features are protected by a conservation easement held by the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy.

Learn more about this beautiful property MichiganCountryRetreat.com.

Property Highlights

• 80 acres total
• 20 acres of shrub, forested and fen wetlands teaming with wildlife
• 60 acres of rolling mixed hardwood forest, with trees 70 feet tall
• A meandering cold water stream where trout have been sited
• A variety of fern species on the Property including Polypody fern, Christmas fern, Lady fern, Sensitive fern, Cinnamon fern, Royal fern, Wood fern, Maidenhair fern, Ebony Spleenwort and several others which speaks to the ecological diversity of the property
• The Forests contain a carpet of spring ephemerals including Spring Beauty, Hepaticas, Trillium, Trout lily, False Solomon’s seal, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Indian Pipe, Waterleaf, Baneberry, and more.

Barry County

The property is in beautiful Barry County, which is often referred to as the County that you can be down state but feel like you are in Northern Michigan. Barry County has a total of over 35,000 acres conserved by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), local government, and nonprofit organizations.

Barry State Game Area

This Property is 1/2 mile from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources owned Fish Lake Unit of the Barry State Game Area (SGA). The Barry SGA is one of the largest continuous blocks of public land in southwest lower Michigan, consisting of approximately 16,755 acres. In conjunction with adjacent Yankee Springs State Recreation Area, these two adjoining properties total more than 22,000 acres. Barry SGA provides critical habitat for a myriad of game and nongame species and supports over 1,500 acres of high-quality natural communities. The Barry SGA contains over 10,000 acres of forest land. Because the landscape surrounding Barry SGA is dominated by agriculture and rural development, the large area of forest within the game area serves as an important island of biodiversity. In addition, the numerous and diverse high-quality wetlands within the game area support an array of rare insects, herptiles, and birds. Barry SGA functions as a biodiversity “hotspot”, especially for herptile species, and its numerous headwater streams and creeks function as high-quality aquatic habitat for numerous aquatic species.

Natural Beauty Roads

This Property is on Guernsey Lake Road, a designated Natural Beauty Road. In Michigan, a Natural Beauty Road (NBR) is a county local road designated to preserve its natural, undisturbed beauty, primarily due to unique native vegetation and natural features within the road’s right-of-way. These roads are specifically chosen to offer residents and the public a chance to enjoy the natural environment while ensuring safe travel. This 3 mile stretch of Guernsey Lake Road as it winds and drops through the forests and wetlands between Norris and Lindsey Roads has been officially designated as a Natural Beauty Road. Guernsey Lake Road is one of only five designated Natural Beauty Roads in Barry County.

Property Tax

This is a HUGE incentive for the new owner!! Thanks to Public Act 446 passed in 2006, upon transfer of a conservation easement property the property tax remains capped. There will be no “pop-up” to the current SEV.