The Sanctuary at Wildwood
Jones, Michigan
By Jackie Sheckler Finch

“We are very blessed, I will tell you that,” says innkeeper Dick Buerkle. “This is a pretty unique place and we really enjoy sharing it with people.”

Daffodils and budding trees greet the spring, emerald hills bask in the summer sun, a tapestry of colors blazes in autumn, and falling snow makes a peaceful wonderland in winter. The Sanctuary at Wildwood celebrates each season with Mother Nature as an honored guest.

“We are very blessed, I will tell you that,” says innkeeper Dick Buerkle. “This is a pretty unique place and we really enjoy sharing it with people.”

In fact, the name says it all. The Sanctuary at Wildwood is a place to get away from the world’s bustle and contemplate the true meaning of life amid the joys of the great outdoors.

“We want to bring the outside in, to see the outside no matter where you are,” Dick says. “Our goal was to make this the kind of place that we would like to visit. We look for the ‘Wow factor.’ When people come in and say ‘Wow!’ we know we have a winner.”

Sitting on 95 acres of beautiful rolling hills in Jones, Michigan, the Sanctuary has abundant woods, water and wildlife. It’s where indoor luxury meets the great outdoors.

View from the Lodge looking at the Cottages.

A former parks and recreation director in Colorado Springs, Dick says he and his wife, Dolly, consider their inn a dream come true. “My wife saw a flier on this place and we came over to take a look at it,” he recalls. “It was a millionaire’s private estate with an old Johnny Weissmuller-type swimming pool. We decided it was what we wanted so we made a bid and here we are.”

Of course, many hours of construction and renovation were needed to create the enchanting inn. Visitors have a choice of five lovely guest rooms with fireplaces, Jacuzzis, private balconies or decks, or six luxurious suites in the Wildwood Cottage Collection. Each room features a touch of the outdoors – in its name and its décor.

The Wolf Prince has dogwood branches over the bed in a headboard to form a natural canopy. In the Medicine Hawk, two birch pillars flank the bed. The hawk stands sentinel in the suite with glorious views of the surrounding woods. For quiet solace, a whitetail buck and his doe provide the theme. A wall mural of a grove of evergreens and a dramatic overhead canopy of branching ironwood in the bed headboard completes the illusion of a wooded setting. Heron Pass features a corner headboard of peeled elms. The colors of the marsh at dawn evoke memories of the timeliness of nature.

The newest addition to the Sanctuary, the three Wildwood Cottages feature six suites with great views of the pond and wildlife. With a cozy Adirondack feeling, the suites with their Jacuzzis and fireplaces are popular for a secluded romantic getaway. “You can snuggle up in a queen sized four-poster tree bed with some of the branches still on them so it is like sleeping in the woods,” Dick says.

The views from the Great Room and Dining Room are breathtaking. As many as 60 Canadian Geese have descended upon the pond and spent a leisurely afternoon before proceeding to their destination. The Great Blue Heron, the inspiration for the inn’s logo, visits the pond morning and evening during the summer months, and deer and wild turkeys can be seen year round.

A full country breakfast by candlelight greets guests each morning. “We want you to start the day with an excellent breakfast,” Dick says. “My wife is a wonderful cook and meal time is special around here.”

The Sanctuary at Wildwood also features themed events, such as the Cayman Pool Party with island music and cuisine around the heated in-ground pool. Colorado Cookouts with steaks from a local old-time butcher and holiday events, including Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s, are popular choices. The Wildwood Chuckwagon Dinner features a country meal around the campfire with music, stories and a hayride topped off with a marshmallow roast.

Special packages include outdoor activities such as skiing, golfing, biking, canoeing, boating and horseback riding. Located in beautiful Southwest Michigan’s wine country, the inn also has wine tastings.

With a large conference room, the inn is a wonderful place for weddings, parties, meetings and seminars.

Guests can explore the surrounding area for antique shopping, Amish settlements, museums, a zoo, auctions and a wealth of outdoor activities. At the inn, guests can watch wildlife and stroll the trails, which Dick keeps mowed with an 8-foot wide path. “I want people to be able to walk side by side holding hands,” he says. “We have old wood benches situated along the trail and it overlooks where people can sit, rest and talk. We’ve had wedding proposals take place on those benches.”

As the sunset signals the end of another glorious day, Dick says he and Dolly have found their bit of heaven on earth. And meeting so many people “who come as guests and leave as family” is the best part of owning an inn, he says.

“I like that feeling of family,” Dick concludes. “Many of our guests return and we become very close to them. That is a great joy.”