Mckoen Road Bridge

Barry County

Located between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, Barry County is an area smattered with lakes, open spaces, and small towns. Its 60,000 residents enjoy plenty of space for places like the 5,000 acre Yankee Spring Recreation Area, which hugs the eastern edge of Gun Lake and boasts water sports, hunting, fishing, and hiking. Multiple large manufacturing companies provide employment for the largest proportion of the county’s residents. Here you can also explore unique places like the Hickory Haven Daylily Gardens, the Gilmore Car Museum, and the Historic Charlton Park.

Hastings is geographically located at the center of Barry County and is the county seat. Situated on the banks of the Thornapple River, Hastings is 45 minutes from Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Lansing. Hastings is known for their community festivals such as Hastings Live!, Summerfest, and Rivertown Days.

Hastings Summerfest is an annual summer festival held in downtown Hastings by the Barry County Chamber of Commerce Summerfest Committee. The event features arts and crafts vendors on the courthouse lawn, concessions, free trolley rides, children’s activities, a softball tournament, 3-on-3 basketball, 10K/5K run, roller hockey tournament, weight lifting contest, parade, car show, live entertainment, and a refreshment tent.

Rivertown Days 

Hastings Live! offers free concerts every Wednesday during June and July. The Thornapple Arts Council organizes the event.

Middleville Heritage Days Festival centers on the early days of the village, founded in 1834, and features events for all ages.

Delton Founders Festival is a annual, family-oriented festival in Delton during the second full weekend in August.

Barry Rubaix Killer Gravel Road Race & Founders Fall Fondo Bike Race, like the classic it’s named after, Barry-Roubaix tests riders against (80%) rolling gravel roads, pavement, one mile of rough two track, rocks, sand, mud, and possibly snow and ice as riders traverse the scenic roads of Barry County.

Roots Music Festival celebrates folk, blues, and bluegrass with performances and workshops every September.

Thornapple Arts Council Jazz Festival was started in 2003 and has grown to be the largest jazz festival of its kind. Though its clinician program, it has matched more student groups and performers to professional jazz musicians than any other festival in the United States. This non-competitive festival puts education, jazz promotion, and appreciation at its core.

Thornapple Plaza & Hastings LIVE! Summer Music Series

Barry County Brewfest is the self-proclaimed ‘freshest’ beer fest in West Michigan and brings people together every August.

Arts and Eats Tour is a free self-driving tour of Barry and Allegan Counties. Participants get to chat with local artisans in their studios, see working farms, and sample local food from at area eateries. Visitors will discover specialty food crops, fiber products, and heritage animals. The tour explores rural areas, forests, and towns via back roads, and out-of-the-way places.

Gilmore Car Museum works to tell the history of America through the automobile. They foster experiences which connect people with the history, heritage, and social impact of the automobile through collecting, preserving, and interpreting its story.

Riverbank Music Series

Sandyland Music Series

Gun Lake Tribal Headquarters of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians is just over the border in Allegan County.

Tribal Service Area Map

Latina Network of West Michigan

Yankee Springs Recreation Area has rugged terrain, bogs, marshes, lakes, and streams. The park’s 5,200 acres are enjoyed for many activities including hiking, biking, cross country skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and ice fishing. The park’s nine lakes offer fishing and water sports of all kinds during warm weather. Gun Lake offers various camping opportunities including rustic and equestrian camping as well as youth camping facilities.

Gun Lake

YMCA Camp Manitou-Lin sits on over 160 acres in Middleville and offers numerous camp activities for both day and overnight campers.

Camp Thornapple, Inc is located between Nashville and Hastings on Thornapple Lake and boasts 32 wooded acres with full hookup sites (electric, water and sewer), 4 water and electric sites, and 3 primitive sites on High Bank Creek that runs through the park.

Hastings Bowl features 18 lanes and a full service bar/lounge and snack bar.

The Legacy at Hastings Golf Course

YMCA of Barry County

U Rent Em Canoe Livery

Gun Lake Casino is just over the border in Allegan County.

Wesley Woods Camp & Retreat

Long Lake Outdoor Center

Rivergate Campground

Winding Creek Camp

Whispering Waters Campground

Indian Valley Campground

Michigan Audoubon Otis Farm Bird Sanctuary

Pierce Cedar Creek Institute

Kellogg Biological Station

Barry-Roubiax Killer Gravel Bike Race

Did you know?

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