A Bountiful Harvest of Fun
by amy s. eckart
“Yes, there really is a Kalamazoo.”
That response is a mantra in this town midway between Chicago and Detroit. The city’s unusual moniker has been bandied around in pop culture for decades. But there’s more to Kalamazoo than a funny name. Southwestern Michigan’s largest city (population approximately 75,000) is home to 36 parks and green spaces; an impressive bicycle trail; and cultural offerings driven by four colleges and universities. Visitors would do well to heed these fun options:
The Kalamazoo Air Zoo took its name from its collection of Wildcat, Hellcat, Bearcat and Flying Tiger planes when it was founded in 1977. Thirty years and 50 aircraft later, it ranks as one of the nation’s leading aeronautics museums.
From meticulously restored WWI planes to NASA artifacts, the Air Zoo recounts a century of air travel, engaging even those with only marginal aviation interest. In addition to an abundance of fighter planes, it is home to the Midwest’s first 4-D film (complete with funny glasses), and a flight simulator where visitors swivel their “aircraft” left, right, and upside down at the touch of the joystick.
The 34-mile Kal-Haven Trail, once the bed of the Kalamazoo-South Haven rail line, quickly enters birch, maple and oak forest as it leaves northwest Kalamazoo. Bicyclists, runners and horseback riders relish the canopy of green in warm weather. Bright foliage and snow make it an eye-catching haven later in the year.
A one-way journey along the 10-foot-wide path takes fit bicyclists about 3 hours. But most Kal-Haven visitors opt for out-and-back jaunts. And in spite of the trail’s appeal to some 90,000 annual visitors, there’s little but the sounds of birds and the crunch of crushed stone underfoot all the way to the Kal-Haven’s terminus in South Haven—the resort tow hugging Lake Michigan west of Kalamazoo.
Fine arts fun beckons at the Park Trades Center. Once home to the Saniwax wax paper company, today, the century-old manufacturing facility houses more than 50 artist studios. On the first floor, craftspeople weld steel into furniture at Things of Steel, jewelers fashion contemporary designs at Brighter Shade of Blue and ceramists sculpt at Randy Walker.
Artists in these media and others recount their passions and processes at Park Trades Center. Many open their studios to the public on Fridays, some on Thursdays, too. But the best time to find busy, talkative artists is during the city’s Art Hop, held throughout the downtown the first Friday of each month.
Get Your Game On. With four colleges in town, it’s no wonder there’s nearly always a home game in Kalamazoo. Western Michigan University sports provide the most opportunity to cheer. The school is home to 26,000 students and enough football, basketball and baseball to occupy their weekends.
But Kalamazoo also presents professional sports. In winter, the Wings draw hockey fans to Wings Stadium. When baseball season rolls around, the Frontier League Kalamazoo Kings play on the banks of the Kalamazoo River at Mayor’s Riverfront Park. The park also hosts the West Michigan Mayhem, the state’s only professional women’s tackle football team, which plays in the summer.
Kalamazooans won’t deny their hometown bears a comical name. But with attractions like these and they’re willing to take a little ribbing. They know they’ll have the last laugh.
What’s In a Name?
The town is located on the Kalamazoo River. Both take their names from the Native American word for “bubbling water”—kikalamezo. Legend says that to win his bride, a Potawatomi ran from his village to the river and back before a pot of water boiled.