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Nichols Arboretum
Rating Details »
Categories: Parks, Landmarks & Historical Buildings [Edit]
1610 Washington HtsAnn Arbor, MI 48104
(734) 998-9540
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
17 reviews for Nichols Arboretum
I felt like pressuring my girlfriend into outdoor romance, so naturally I took her to the Arb. Unfortunately, every other douchebag boyfriend thought of the same thing: the secluded spot we discovered was "occupied." (You'd be surprised how fast someone can throw their clothes back on.)
Anyway, the Arb's a great place to jog, walk the trails, and be one with nature; just poor for fornicating.
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you can...
1) consume hallucinogenics
2) play ultimate
3) chill in the field
4) get your frolic on
5) marvel at the river
...then walk your filthy ass home. congrats, u r now ann arbor material... the good kind. =) unless u were on a jogging date... then u suck. =(
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Oh Arb, how I love thee on a summer day. Especially when sitting quietly by the river, contemplating life, and a group of rowdy 50+ beer bellies canoe by with a case of Schlitz in their rented canoe. You never disappoint me, as each time I visit, the sun through the trees looks a little different, and casts a new spell on me. I'm in love. When I'm feeling extra saucy, I'll roll down the hill into the valley, and get sunburned while watching young men try to balance on a tightrope. Nope, that's not the weed, that's the actual view. Today you were filled with flowers in bloom, and lots of dogs who loved me. At least, that's what I tell myself.
For you who read, visit and visit often. Find your own path. You won't be sorry.
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OMG - I absolutely LOVE The Arb!
I actually dropped by the Arb throughout this heavy winter season and enjoyed snowy hikes and wow- the Huron River had never looked so beautiful! The Arb will really make you appreciate the 4 seasons that Michigan has to offer. Spring/Summer is jamming with picnics and relaxing strolls, kayaking and plenty of romantic couple's.
The fall season is really one of the best times to visit the Arb. The fall color's really pop through the tree's.
This is a MUST SEE for anyone out of the area.
The Arb is a great place for a first date...and many many dates thereafter!
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The "Arb" is where I would go when I couldn't afford a vacation. It's tucked neatly in a 1,000 count sheet neighborhood. In the fall, the leaves are gorgeous against the ground, and in the summer, it's the perfect hilly spot for a picnic. There are trails to explore, ducks to cackle at, and intermittent benches to chill and read a book on.
Greatest memory: breaking into the Arb at night, sitting on a log, staring at Ann Arbor's "skyline" with my date in the dead of winter, smoking and watching the little orange sparks fly off of our cigarettes and disappear ino the thick blanket of snow, then carrying the stubs out of the park to properly dispose of them. One of my favorite memories ever -- gorgeous.
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Absolutely beautiful! You can walk forever in the Arb, and never see the same spot twice. Each day you go and each step you take in another direction will show you some other pretty detail you can't believe you missed the last time.
You'll see other people walking, relaxing, taking pictures, being romantic, laughing, having fun and generally just enjoying the Arb whenever you go.
The Arb is well loved for a reason. The name Ann Arbor evokes trees, but a lot of the city is paved over and built up with commercial properties. In the middle of all this, there's acres and acres of grass and trees and flowers, with a river running through it. It's a little spot of the country in the middle of the city.
Nichols Arboretum is great for walking, hiking, jogging, picnicking, and just generally hanging out. On a given spring or fall day, you're likely to see University of Michigan students here laying on a blanket doing homework or just hanging with friends. But it also attracts families with young children and workers from the nearby U of M hospital out walking on their breaks as well.
If you decide to check out the Arb, make sure your knees are in good shape, because there are a lot of steep hills here. Another warning: parking can be hard to find near the Washington Heights entrance, especially when the university is in session. You might have better luck finding street parking if you try the Geddes Ave. entrance.
The "Arb" is consistently voted a top "romantic date" or "cheap date" spot (basically indistingushable in college undergrad-speak) by the readers of the Michigan Daily for good reason: you probably won't find a prettier place in Ann Arbor.
If you're from the American West, rural New England, New Zealand, Canada, or anywhere else legitimately pretty, it helps if you take into account that in the midwest, we like to put our "nature" in safe little cages, cut broad paths through it and then caveat and "beware of " sign ourselves out of the potential lawsuits that are practically inevitable the moment someone (or their kid) trips over the pretty. They turn out overcrowded, over-managed, and underwhelming.
That said, Nichols Arboretum is where we keep the pretty in Ann Arbor. For the water-body-deprived, one of the main paths follows the Huron River for a while. Other paths lead to a prairie, through standard forest preserve mediocrity, to private property at one point, and past smattering of numbered trees representing the indigenous flora. A guide is available online and sometimes at the entrances.
I don't think you really find the pretty by sticking to the paths so wide two vehicles could pass each other comfortably. My favorites branch to the East just north of the peony gardens at the Washington Heights entrance. Winding through trees with actual inclines and declines that spill at places into sunny fields, you might actually experience the something almost Sublime. Or perhaps at least some "Ooh! I'm in Nature" tranquility of the sort that launched a thousand high school syllabus-clogging American supermalewriter essays and poems. Or maybe you'll at least get laid for doing something besides taking her to the bar.
The summer shakespeare is a great time. And when you go on your kitsch little picnic, DO NOT FORGET YOUR CORKSCREW. (Thanks again for the pen, yelp guys-- took a long time, but we got the wine to pour!)
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When I'm not in Ann Arbor one of the first things I miss is the Arb. It's so true that we take things for granted until we don't have them!
The arb is great. Hardly any of the trails are paved; most are woodchips, gravel, or dirt. The scenery is so different throughout the arb as well so depending where you go, you can have a completely different experience.
You can bring a picnic and sit in the prarie. You can watch people playing frisbee in the large field. You can bring your camera and take pics of the blooming peonies in early summer. You can come watch the UofM Residential College students put on their annual play in the arb (aweeesome). You can sit by the river and watch canoeists try to dodge "the rock man" - the older guy who spends all day, every day, all summer rearranging the rocks in the Huron River. Love it, love it, love it.
BOTTOM LINE: Take advantage of this great spot & make the Arb your own.
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Oh, the arb.
Come here to walk, hike, sit, read, picnic, sled (just kidding, I think this is illegal, and I would never do it), and enjoy the outdoors. It's a great reprieve from the stress of everyday life, and you can walk down to the Huron river. Kayaking down the river is also a great warm-weather activity.
I like the pine forests, huge, open green space, and trail walks. You'll see people with dogs, couples, and families. Come here for quiet, solitude and happiness.
Big park tucked into a corner of Ann Arbor. Plenty of room to run, bike or jog in the park. Access to the Huron River.
The park has wooded areas and lawns, hills and flatlands, a prairie of natural tall grasses. A great place for a walk or just hanging out.
Little oasis in AA. Great for a summer weekend stroll or a good run. On a hot day wander down to the river and wade around to cool off. Good place to get away from all the {sarcasm}wild and craziness that is Ann Arbor!{/sarcasm}
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Aesthetically, the Arb is the one of the few entirely bearable areas in Ann Arbor, one of the ugliest cities I've ever seen (and I've driven through the Texas Panhandle). There's a very nice gravel path along the Huron River, and some very pretty meadows. I also used to really enjoy jumping the train tracks and walking all the way to Gallup Park from here.
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You have to take a walk through for yourself to really understand and appreciate the Arb. I used to love to go to this place when in school. I especially liked it in the spring, when the weather would start to warm up and I could just go there and appreciate being outside after being couped up during the long winter. Walking, biking, wandering, relaxing, picnic-ing... whatever you want to do, the Arb is a good place to do it. The Arb is very large, so you can make a whole day of just wandering around and taking in the beautiful sights (it really is just pretty).
This is the center of Pure Ann Arbor. We are a rather urban area which some out of touch PR person calls "tree town." The Arb is an all-season outdoor treat:
Winter: you can find a long steep-ish slope and sled down it. (Maybe it's not forbidden.)
Spring: you can walk beside the mile-long row of daffodils, which don't quite all bloom at once, and see the antique peony garden come into full bloom.
Summer: if you are anti-rules you can ride your mountain bike down the no-bikes-allowed trail. Dogs, but not people, swim in the river. Canoes go by till the water level is too low.
Fall: watch the trees turn colors. Ride the forbidden trails.
And now , if you have been around for a while you can appreciate the newly reformed river banks that replace a series of misguided attempts to fight erosion. For your first 10 visits, you can almost get lost in the woods, but you'll always end up next to the back fence of a big and beautiful house. Further along the river and across the RR track (also forbidden) you can wander a street on which there's an authentic Frank Lloyd Wright house.
Ann Arbor legends, as good as they get.
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I love the Arb!
This is probably the thing I miss most about my hometown.....The Arb is the best effin park in the world! I mean it too! I've trained here for cross country, come sledding (shhh!) in the winter, lazed by the river and just taken in the beauty of this place. Plus it connects to that other park...Shit, forgot the name, but it's a great park too. Better for running/cycling cuz of the paved paths. EVERYONE in Ann Arbor MUST GO TO THE ARB!
