In the shadow of the great Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes, one river winds its way from Glen Lake to Lake Michigan in no apparent rush. You will know this tranquil waterway as the Crystal River, and further grow to love her westernmost banks in the historic village of Glen Arbor. Come experience the River at Crystal Bend, an ageless playground of native plants, putts, paddling and peeling laughter. Join us at The River in Glen Arbor for Kayak and Tube Rentals,Canoe Rentals, Mini-Golf, Eco Tours, great activities and family fun! Open 7 days a week. MAKE YOUR RESERVATION ONLINE!

Gorgeous mornin, but no ones here!  Sunday’s are so slow.  Great time to get out on the Crystal River.  Get down here and rent a kayak or canoe or tube or paddleboard.  Play some putt putt or ping pong.  Were here…..open for business and anxious to serve you.  Come on down.  It’s supposed to warm up to 83 degrees.  Should be a great day at the River.

Looking like a great day to paddle the Crystal River.  Warm air and water temps.  I dropped the dam gates an inch yesterday to bring the water levels up to 35 cfs, plenty of water for a float in one of our kayaks, canoes or tubes.

Locals!  Half price on all your activities at the River through the end of the season before 10 a.m. and after 3 p.m.   Please call us first, epecially if you have a group over 6 persons. Leelanau, Benzie and Grand Traverse County residents all qualify.  Get out on the Crystal River and make some memories.

Don’t let the weather forecast keep you off the River today.  A 40% chance of rain?  Who cares? Your wet anyway.  And it’s over 80 degrees.  The rain may help cool you off and it is gorgeous to paddle in.  Raindrops on the River?  Gorgeous!

18 hole championship putt putt/mini golf, pinball arcade, trading post (big sales) free ping pong and giant chess, eco tours, kayak and canoe livery all at the River Putt and Paddle.  So get down here to 5959 S. Oak Street in beautiful Glen Arbor surrounded by the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park and make some memories.

Last year we sold off most of our 2009 kayaks and canoes.  Now, with the amazingly free services of Craigs List, we should be able to sell off the entire fleet of the remaining 2009′s and 2010′s.  We will be putting in an order this October for new boats and hope to be renting kayaks on the Crystal year round.  Winter paddling can be incredible.  Anyway, pictures above are most of the boats that we have.  I have a few misc. kayaks including a Wilderness Double Cockpit Kayak and upper left photo of an EMS Single Cockpit Kayak.  Most of our fleet are the Old Town Vapor 10′s ($300) and 12′s, ($350) and Old Town Tandem Otters for $500.  All of our Ocean Kayaks are for sale as well.  Scrambler 11′s for 350 and Malibu Doubles for 550.  Our Old Town Discovery Canoes are 600.  Shop around and you will find these to be incredible deals.

With the summer season winding down we want to extend an invitation to all locals looking for a rental deal on the Crystal River. Here it is:  Half Price on all rentals before 10 a.m. and after 3 p.m. through fall colors.  Just show us your drivers license and if you are a Leelanau, Benzie or Traverse City resident, your half price.  C’mon locals…..whens the last time you got your family out on the Crystal or Platte River?  Heres your chance.

Championship 18 hole Putt putt/mini golf  course is in fabulous shape.  Crees sustainable gardens are thriving.  Were running blow out deals on all our merchandise.  Ping pong table and giant chess set available for you at no charge.  Pinball Arcade is fired up.  The weather is gorgeous.  The water on the River and in the Lakes is perfect for swimming.  Get down to the River putt and paddle in downtown Glen Arbor inside the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park and let us help you make some memories.

This picture on the right is taken a few nights ago out on Shell Lake.  I had a group of “birders” for this Eco Tour that were hoping to photograph the Sand Hill Cranes and Loons and I took son Finn along. We saw both but got no photos. I set Finn up with a nightcrawler harness and he caught bluegill on every drift.  I went after small mouth bass and had a fish on just about every cast with a small barbless rapala.  Of course we gave all the fish back to Shell Lake, hopefully none of them were harmed.  These morning and evening trips out on Tucker and Shell have been popular this summer for families that don’t have access to small inland lakes.  We transport and supply the kayaks or canoes, paddles, life preservers, etc.  I have some extra fishing tackle you are welcome to as well all gratis. Great family trip.  Stop down at the Livery at 5959 S. Oak in downtown Glen Arbor on the banks of the mighty Crystal River and we will give you the “skinny” on whats happening in the great outdoors of Leelanau County.  Still plenty of summer left, so get out in the wilderness and enjoy it.

We will be listing all of our rental kayaks and canoes on Craigs list at the end of the week but starting to sell them now.  Prices start at 300 bucks for the Old Town Vapor 10′s, up to 500 for the Ocean Kayak Tandems and the Old Town Twin Otters.  I will deliver and warrenty all these boats.  Paddles and life preservers all 25 bucks. These are very good deals, so if your interested, get down to the Livery and ask for Mike.  This makes a great Christmas present.

Weather looks great for paddling the Crystal today, but with this big West wind, the Glen Lakes and Lake Michigan not very usable, unless you have ambitions to recreate Earnest Shackletons acheivements.  The Ocean Kayaks would do fine in the big lake, if you want to go for it, we will rent you the boat.  Simply put in on the Crystal here at our livery and paddle three miles out into Lake Michigan, and try to make it back the two miles to Glen Arbor.  Go for it.   If you don’t make it, I will come pick you up.

18 hole championship putt putt/mini golf course in great shape. Got a new case of ping pong balls.  Giant chess set all set up.  Becky has everything in the Trading Post on Sale.  Should be our last “busy” week as everyone starting to think about getting organized to get back to school……so get down here and take advantage of great weather and great deals at the River Putt and Paddle on the banks of the Crystal River in beautiful Glen Arbor.

Mike

I flushed a blue heron and a greenback heron on my two minute walk to work this morning on the Crystal River.  It is a gorgeous Sunday morning. Today will be perfect for floating the Crystal River and/or with this West breeze a route along the North shore of Big Glen into the Fishers.

We have tubes, paddleboards and plenty of kayaks and canoes available for rental today. Sundays usually are not that busy on the River. So come on down to the livery, check out our maps and plan your day out on the gorgeous Crystal River.

Probably the deepest part of the Crystal River is right in front of our livery.  Four feet or so and a sandy bottom makes this a great place for families to cool off and swim.  Everyone is welcome to come swim off our boardwalk at no charge.  Plenty of parking.  Clean bathroom/changing rooms, etc.  Come on down and take a dip.

We should not be that busy today.  Still helps to call us and make a reservation.  We don’t take a deposit, but nice to know your coming so we can have your kayaks or canoes loaded and ready to go.  No wind in the forecast so paddling on the lakes is an option.  Should be a great day for kayaking, canoeing, tubing, paddleboarding and of course mini/golf putt putt golf.  5959 S. Oak Street in downtown Glen Arbor nestled inside the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on the banks of the Crystal River.  Come on down!

We dropped this 2010 Tandem Ocean Malibu off on the West Shore of Big Glen for this nice lady for a weekly rental.  ($200)  Getting boats out to cottages and picked up at the end of the rental period has become a very big part of our Business at The River.  We deliver for free and supply everything you need including paddles and life jackets.  Its a great way to go especially if you use the boats in the River and out on Lake Michigan. For example:  Lets say you start paddling on your boat from Big Glen and ended up in Lake Michigan.  Walk back to our livery in Glen Arbor from the boat ramp (five minute walk), and we will run down and pick up your kayak and deliver you back home!  Free!  Do it as many times as you like.

Weather looks fantastic today for paddling any of our kayaks, canoes, paddleboards or tubes.  Putt putt/mini golf course is playing fast with no rain for a few days.  The otters were spotted all over the Crystal River yesterday.  We had quite a few tubers on “the loop” with those 90 degree temperatures.   The river and lakes are so incredibly warm for swimming.  Get down to the River Putt and Paddle in Beautiful Glen Arbor on the Banks of the Crystal River nestled inside the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and make some memories.

Oh yea……mention this blog and all retail at the livery and the trading post is HALF OFF.  T-shirts, petoskey stones, puzzles, books, jewelry, life jackets, paddles, horses, Indian dolls, toys, jackalops, etc. etc.  Also, We are now selling off all the kayak and canoe fleet.  Cheap and with warranties.  Come down and check out The River.

It’s the same feeling towards the end of every summer season:  It went so fast!  But this summer seems even worse. This picture was taken just a few nights ago on Sleeping Bear Bay and yesterday we started fall varsity sports in Traverse City.  My son Fisher said how excited he is to get back to school. Ugh! I’m not….I need another month or two of summer.

So get outdoors quick, because indeed,  summer is nearly over.  And today the weather looks great, (85 degrees and no wind) allowing us to use Glen Lake, The Fisher Lakes, the Crystal River and Lake Michigan for our kayak and canoe routes.  Tubes and paddleboards available as well.  Water is warm.  Lake and River levels are perfect thanks to the rain a few nights ago in Glen Arbor.

I remain at the top of the chess and ping pong ladder.  Bring all challengers.  Fishers 36 on our 18 hole championship putt/putt mini golf course still the lowest score ever shot.  No one has challenged the high scores on our pinball machines.  But, if anyone does beat the high scores in any of these activities, we will give you a free kayak trip down the mighty Crystal River.  If someone beats a 36 on the putt putt course, they will need to play Fisher head to head and if they beat him, they will get a season pass to the course next year. Acually, I will extend that to anyone that breaks 40 on the course.  C’mon, a monkey could shoot a 40…….not!

The point is, get outdoors.  Let The River at Crystal Bend Putt and Paddle help you.  We know Leelanau County and want to help you make some memories with your family.

My best…..Mike

There is evidence of Native Americans being in Glen Arbor going back thousands of years.  However, tipis like this one at the River Putt and Paddle were not used here in Leelanau County.  The Native Americans (mostly Ojibwa) that traveled through here seasonally used Quonset huts built out of birchbark.

Weatherunderground.com is calling for no wind today allowing us to use Glen Lake and Lake Michigan for our kayak and canoe routes.  There is a possibility of rain mid day.  However, I would not let this influence how you plan your day.  Get out doors and if you get rained on, who cares?  If fact, it is amazing to paddle in the rain.  But, lets say you rented a kayak from us for a trip and you did get rained on, we will give you a rain check for another float down the Crystal River for a later date.  You can’t lose!

18 Hole Championship Putt putt/mini golf in excellent shape, greens playing a little quick.  Cree’s sustainable gardens are thriving.  The water temperatures are warm.  Water levels on the Crystal are perfect for paddling although I would recommend single man kayaks over canoes or tandem kayaks.  We have a small fleet of 8 foot Pelican sit on top boats for kids six and up.  Carry a leash so you can tie their boat to yours if they get tired.  Giant Chess and Ping Pong all set up and free.  Picnic tables and benches available if you want to picnic on our property.

Get down to the River and make some memories.  Summers almost over!  Get out there!

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