Hey everyone!
i've been riding around saginaw since i've known how to ride my bike, so i figured i might be able to throw together some info for people that might be coming through saginaw. i'd consider it a good place to stop on your way up through michigan, if you need to. anyways this is my first *informational* post so bear with me ^_^
Where to hang around:
Old Town is definitely where you'll want to be. It's on the west side of town along the saginaw river, across from downtown. Old town is where you'll find a lot of local businesses, like Fralia's sandwich shop, Dawn of a new day coffee house, Pasongs, Fuzzy's, and the court street grill (the latter two having ridiculously low prices for their food). A lot of places downtown are totally homeless friendly (i've been hanging out with homeless people in old town since i was like 9. homeless people/travelers fit in here comfortably). Many places offer food to the hungry after closing as well, like Pasongs, which is run by my friend tina. she usually gives free food out back in the alley, so definitely head there if you're hungry!
There is also a skate shop (old town skateshop), as well as a bike shop (the stable), right in Old town. There's also a few bars, mostly on hamilton street, as well as a gay bar.
Be sure to stop by Thine Om Self, which is run by my really good friends scott and josh. It's a small massage therapy studio, as well as a small shop for organic, locally made products (like lotions, tea/tea accessories, jam, incense, and even art). It's a cool little place. They'd appreciate the business!
Lastly, there's the red eye, which you have to visit if you're in saginaw. it's where a lot of the local artists, queers, and activists hang out. and it's just a great place to sit at for hours. you'll find yourself in quite a few conversations with some good people (there are a few pretentious people but they're not too bad).
Oh, and right next door is the tattoo shop (old town tattoo shop), just in case. it's also a cool place to hang out as well. i have some friends there, and they're really cool people so definitely stop by.
Old town is great. It's a good place to meet a few cool people for sure.
Where not to hang around:
Avoid the east side. That is, the side of the river that downtown is on. I never go over there (I only have a few times in my life) but it's dangerous from everything i've been told. the crime rates are very high. that's the reason saginaw is like, the 3rd worst place to live in the US. so i'd say just avoid the east side. i can't claim to know too much about it, but i've only heard bad things. that being said, maybe you'll find something cool oer there or meet some interesting folk! let me know if you do
Besides that, there's the township, which is OK. it's mostly white, mostly boring, mostly chain stores. it makes me uncomfortable, but that's just me. The only thing really worth mentioning is the Kroger on state street. they have a pretty good organic foods section that's worth checking out.
Parks:
1. Shiawassee national wildlife refuge
http://www.michigantrailmaps.com/member-profile/3/50/
^^check out that website for info^^
I walk here almost every day. I've slept in the forst a billion times too, so it's a decent place to squat for a night. i recommend doing so on the woodland trail, about 2 miles in or so. Be sure to go in before dark. that's when it closes. There are bathrooms here as well (gross ones tho).
2. Imerman Park
http://www.michigan.org/property/imerman-memorial-park/
^^info^^
I dont go here very often, because you have to pay like 5$ to get in, and it's not easy to access, especially on bike. could be a good place to squat though. some of the trails go deep into woods. it's very beautiful as well. probably the prettiest of the parks.
3. Ojibway Island
It's right across the river from old town. just a big island with a lot of trees that you can climb. there's a couple bike trails too but they're short and one goes into the east side a lil. you'll probably meet some cool people on the island though!
Those are all the parks i'd consider noteworthy. There's also the rail trail, which is out by the Shiawassee trail. Just take stroebel road to the trail. the trail itself is 9 miles long. it goes all the way to st. charles. while the trail is pretty and i ride it often, st. charles is very redneck and i know that freaks a lot of people out (me included), so maybe just dont hang around in st. charles.
Places to squat for a night or two:
1. Abandoned train bridge on west michigan ave (right next to the forest river condos). Alright so i've been squatting under this bridge for a while. i'd say it's my #1 recommendation around saginaw. basically all you do is cross the train bridge, climb down some big concrete steps, walk down to the water, and hop up on this big concrete ledge under the bridge. it's hard for you to be seen, and it's nice and quiet and secluded. the only thing is that there can be a lot of bugs down there during the summer. it usually doesn't get that bad at all, but i always bring bug spray.
Here's some pictures of the bridge spot:
The only other thing i'll say is watch out for rednecks. i've never had any issues with them, but there are in this area, and rednecks are unpredictable, so just be aware and be safe! the area around the bridge is super pretty so i recommend going on a walk before bed!
2. Shiawassee (which i talk about already)
3. There's a small park in the township, which has a bicycle path you can access on shattuck road, between hemmeter st and north center st. it's very wide open and gets very dark at night. there's a few bushes and areas against fences that i've slept at before. it's definitely an option!
These are just some of the places i've done it most frequently, not places that are foolproof or guaranteed to be of use. use your best judgement!
Other things:
- stay away from Eric Schantz. if you meet people in old town, some of them might invite you to meet him or hang out with him or something, since he's like "the" local artist. but he's a total perv, creep, and asshole. i don't want to go into detail but the dude's nasty so keep away. most people know their shit tho and stay away from him.
- bug spray! saginaw is marshland! lots of bugs esp in the parks.
- plz message me or something if you want any more info! there's a lot that i didn't include. i was just trying to get some basic stuff out there, but please lemme know if there's anything else i can help you with. i kow the place like the back of my hand so i can for sure help you.
- I also know a lot of people in saginaw. let me know if you need to stay in a house or need someone to like pick you up in their car or something. i'll contact people and make it happen for you
that's all i can think of. i hope this has been helpful. sorry for my shit organization/writing skills haha.
enjoy saginaw
-von
i've been riding around saginaw since i've known how to ride my bike, so i figured i might be able to throw together some info for people that might be coming through saginaw. i'd consider it a good place to stop on your way up through michigan, if you need to. anyways this is my first *informational* post so bear with me ^_^
Where to hang around:
Old Town is definitely where you'll want to be. It's on the west side of town along the saginaw river, across from downtown. Old town is where you'll find a lot of local businesses, like Fralia's sandwich shop, Dawn of a new day coffee house, Pasongs, Fuzzy's, and the court street grill (the latter two having ridiculously low prices for their food). A lot of places downtown are totally homeless friendly (i've been hanging out with homeless people in old town since i was like 9. homeless people/travelers fit in here comfortably). Many places offer food to the hungry after closing as well, like Pasongs, which is run by my friend tina. she usually gives free food out back in the alley, so definitely head there if you're hungry!
There is also a skate shop (old town skateshop), as well as a bike shop (the stable), right in Old town. There's also a few bars, mostly on hamilton street, as well as a gay bar.
Be sure to stop by Thine Om Self, which is run by my really good friends scott and josh. It's a small massage therapy studio, as well as a small shop for organic, locally made products (like lotions, tea/tea accessories, jam, incense, and even art). It's a cool little place. They'd appreciate the business!
Lastly, there's the red eye, which you have to visit if you're in saginaw. it's where a lot of the local artists, queers, and activists hang out. and it's just a great place to sit at for hours. you'll find yourself in quite a few conversations with some good people (there are a few pretentious people but they're not too bad).
Oh, and right next door is the tattoo shop (old town tattoo shop), just in case. it's also a cool place to hang out as well. i have some friends there, and they're really cool people so definitely stop by.
Old town is great. It's a good place to meet a few cool people for sure.
Where not to hang around:
Avoid the east side. That is, the side of the river that downtown is on. I never go over there (I only have a few times in my life) but it's dangerous from everything i've been told. the crime rates are very high. that's the reason saginaw is like, the 3rd worst place to live in the US. so i'd say just avoid the east side. i can't claim to know too much about it, but i've only heard bad things. that being said, maybe you'll find something cool oer there or meet some interesting folk! let me know if you do
Besides that, there's the township, which is OK. it's mostly white, mostly boring, mostly chain stores. it makes me uncomfortable, but that's just me. The only thing really worth mentioning is the Kroger on state street. they have a pretty good organic foods section that's worth checking out.
Parks:
1. Shiawassee national wildlife refuge
http://www.michigantrailmaps.com/member-profile/3/50/
^^check out that website for info^^
I walk here almost every day. I've slept in the forst a billion times too, so it's a decent place to squat for a night. i recommend doing so on the woodland trail, about 2 miles in or so. Be sure to go in before dark. that's when it closes. There are bathrooms here as well (gross ones tho).
2. Imerman Park
http://www.michigan.org/property/imerman-memorial-park/
^^info^^
I dont go here very often, because you have to pay like 5$ to get in, and it's not easy to access, especially on bike. could be a good place to squat though. some of the trails go deep into woods. it's very beautiful as well. probably the prettiest of the parks.
3. Ojibway Island
It's right across the river from old town. just a big island with a lot of trees that you can climb. there's a couple bike trails too but they're short and one goes into the east side a lil. you'll probably meet some cool people on the island though!
Those are all the parks i'd consider noteworthy. There's also the rail trail, which is out by the Shiawassee trail. Just take stroebel road to the trail. the trail itself is 9 miles long. it goes all the way to st. charles. while the trail is pretty and i ride it often, st. charles is very redneck and i know that freaks a lot of people out (me included), so maybe just dont hang around in st. charles.
Places to squat for a night or two:
1. Abandoned train bridge on west michigan ave (right next to the forest river condos). Alright so i've been squatting under this bridge for a while. i'd say it's my #1 recommendation around saginaw. basically all you do is cross the train bridge, climb down some big concrete steps, walk down to the water, and hop up on this big concrete ledge under the bridge. it's hard for you to be seen, and it's nice and quiet and secluded. the only thing is that there can be a lot of bugs down there during the summer. it usually doesn't get that bad at all, but i always bring bug spray.
Here's some pictures of the bridge spot:
The only other thing i'll say is watch out for rednecks. i've never had any issues with them, but there are in this area, and rednecks are unpredictable, so just be aware and be safe! the area around the bridge is super pretty so i recommend going on a walk before bed!
2. Shiawassee (which i talk about already)
3. There's a small park in the township, which has a bicycle path you can access on shattuck road, between hemmeter st and north center st. it's very wide open and gets very dark at night. there's a few bushes and areas against fences that i've slept at before. it's definitely an option!
These are just some of the places i've done it most frequently, not places that are foolproof or guaranteed to be of use. use your best judgement!
Other things:
- stay away from Eric Schantz. if you meet people in old town, some of them might invite you to meet him or hang out with him or something, since he's like "the" local artist. but he's a total perv, creep, and asshole. i don't want to go into detail but the dude's nasty so keep away. most people know their shit tho and stay away from him.
- bug spray! saginaw is marshland! lots of bugs esp in the parks.
- plz message me or something if you want any more info! there's a lot that i didn't include. i was just trying to get some basic stuff out there, but please lemme know if there's anything else i can help you with. i kow the place like the back of my hand so i can for sure help you.
- I also know a lot of people in saginaw. let me know if you need to stay in a house or need someone to like pick you up in their car or something. i'll contact people and make it happen for you
that's all i can think of. i hope this has been helpful. sorry for my shit organization/writing skills haha.
enjoy saginaw
-von
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