By Kevin Howell
Charlie and Andra Shobe weren’t particularly looking for a business to buy. Driving north toward Manistee, where their daughter Sophia attends school, they spotted a group of rustic cabins along U.S. Highway 31.
So many small mom-and-pop roadside traveler cabins are gone now, but a few miles south of Manistee in Mason County, Highway 31 Cabins’ business is still alive and thriving. For the past seven years the cabins have been owned and operated by the Shobes. Before they relocated to Michigan, Charlie was working as a carpenter and Andra as a schoolteacher.
“My husband and I moved up here in 2015 from Ohio,” Andra recalled. “We kind of took a chance and both quit our jobs and bought a place on the Big Sauble River to pre-retire.”
Their ties to Michigan helped make the move easier. Andra, a native from the thumb area north of Detroit, said her parents had moved to Traverse City in 1988, and Charlie’s parents had a vacation cottage near Irons.
Cabins’ mini history
Some of the Highway 31 Cabins were built in the ’40s, Andra figures, and have gone through several owners. “I know they were built between 1940 and 1960,” she began. “Someone told me that the newer ones from the 1960s were kit cabins. I did try researching those at one time and found some photos that look similar to cabin number 2 and 7.”
Andra said she thinks there might have been a restaurant on the property at one time as well.
Originally named Plantation Lodge Cabins from the ’40s through the ’60s, the condition of the cabins suffered over time. “They went dark and overgrown throughout the 1970s,” she said.
The next owners, Cathy and Vern Beeman, took over in the 1980s and renamed the place Lazy B. Sometime later, the cabins again changed hands and were used as more of a family retreat before the Shobes came along. “The cabins had been redone but just needed some TLC,” Andra said.
Cozy and convenient
Since 2017, the Shobes have been designated Airbnb Superhosts. Their care is evident in the seven cabins they rent.
Tucked beneath pines and hardwoods, the log cabins are arranged in a half-loop around a large lawn and central fire pit. This semi-circle grouping of cabins is typical of motor courts that sprang up in the 1930s and were popular through WWII, before roadside motels offering more modern amenities became the rage, according to VintageRoadside.com. Still, many motor courts continued operating well into the 1960s, when some of my generation stayed there as children while vacationing with their parents. So, the idea of staying in vintage roadside cabins holds some nostalgia for those my age, while Millennials might consider them “retro cool.” (Check out some of the 600 reviews they’ve received from people of all ages.)
Six of the Highway 31 Cabins can accommodate one to four people. The seventh cabin is suitable for up to six people. They may look rustic on the outside, but inside are modern amenities such as satellite TVs, microwaves, small refrigerators and coffeemakers. All are cleaned by Sophia and fully furnished and include twin and double beds, depending on the cabin. The cabin I toured was sparkling clean, and the wood walls and vaulted ceiling gave it that true cabin feel.
Four fun seasons
The business is open year-round. In the office, you’ll find an assortment of cross-country skis to rent in winter and a cornhole game for fairer weather.
Most of the cabins are pet friendly, an amenity that draws some interesting critters sometimes. “We accept pets in four of the cabins, dogs, and we have had cats occasionally,” Andra told me. “People have asked about birds, but (we say) no to that.” Well, except for the time they allowed a duck to stay with them. It had ridden from Wisconsin on the S.S. Badger car ferry with its person. (Think about that for a minute: taking a duck for a ride across the lake.)
Of course, it’s the north woods and an occasional bear has stopped by the grounds to rattle the trash cans or just to hang out in the yard.
This is not a resort with hiking trails, playground equipment or swimming pools. It’s a place with a mellow atmosphere and a convenient location, a comfortable spot to land after a day of driving or seeing the local sights.
“Our main clients are people passing through on the highway,” Andra said. “People go out during the day and just come back for the night and sit out by the fire in the evening.”
Things to do
In any direction, within a few miles, visitors can check out the area’s attractions: Nordhouse Dunes and the Lake Michigan Recreation area to the west, farm-fresh produce at Orchard Market to the south, Manistee’s historic downtown and beaches to the north, and a cold beverage and burger at the Hof Bar and Grill to the east.
On the fourth weekend in August, the nearby Forest Trail Music Festival, located on Forest Trail Road west of U.S. Highway 31, will kick off its 5th annual three-day event. Plenty of musical talent will be performing on the outdoor stage.
In October, around the Halloween season, you can have your wits scared out of you at the Cages of Carnage haunted house at Camp Sauble, a former work camp-turned-incarceration facility east of Free Soil. Highway 31 Cabins is a sponsor of this yearly event that supports the local volunteer fire department.
Book your cabin
No higher praise for Highway 31 Cabins could be given than this, by a Yelp reviewer who wrote, “If I were an out-of-stater I would have received the full-blown charm of Michigan. My cup was full. You could tell a lot of work was put into the project, with generous care and loving detail. I would be blessed to return again some day.”
Highway 31 Cabins is located at 10400 N. U.S. Highway 31, Free Soil. For more information, visit: www.highway31cabins.com. Call them at 231-464-5351 or email them at highway31cabins@gmail.com. Follow their Facebook and Instagram pages.
Kevin Howell writes from Mason County. He loves the Michigan woods, lakes, people and, especially, Michigan craft beers – not necessarily in that order!
