Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the only one that is entirely in the United States. The name is derived from the Ojibwa word Michi Gami which means “large lake”. The lake borders the states of Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan where the entire west coast of the Lower Michigan Peninsula is on the lake’s shoreline. At its greatest depth Lake Michigan is 923 feet deep and its shores have the world’s largest freshwater sand dunes. It has always been a dream of mine to spend a summer on the Great Lakes so I’d thought I’d kick-off my summer with two weeks on Lake Michigan.

Indiana Dunes National Park

Located 25 miles along the southern shore of Lake Michigan is the only national park in the Hoosier State: Indiana Dunes National Park. The park is 15,000 acres of beaches, sand dunes, bog, wetlands, forests, and historic farms. When I was a kid and my family would visit family in Valparaiso, they would always take us for a beach day at Indiana Dunes so I have fond memories of this park. Although this was merely a one night stop over after dropping Jack off in Chicago, I still had time to visit Mount Baldy which is the largest sand dune in the park at 126 feet.

Grand Haven State Park

My second destination on Lake Michigan was Grand Haven, Michigan which is about 30 miles northwest of Grand Rapids on the eastern shore of the lake. This very popular beach community has many shops and restaurants lining the boardwalk that runs along the canal leading from the harbor out to Lake Michigan. The harbor at Grand Haven is full of motorboats, sailboats, and even the occasional large cargo ship.

Grand Haven State Park is a 48-acre park right on the shore of Lake Michigan and consists entirely of soft beach sand. The beach is wide and provides spectacular views of Lake Michigan, the Grand Haven lighthouse, and sunsets. There is wonderful modern campground right on the sand at Grand Haven State Park and my site had great views of the lake as well as being 30 feet from the beach! It is tight quarters at this very popular campground, but who cares with the spectacular views!

Two piers jettison out into Lake Michigan providing safe passage for boats exiting the harbor out to the lake. On the south pier is the Grand Haven Lighthouse which was built in 1839. The lighthouse itself sits atop the pier, but there is a historic catwalk which is elevated off the pier which provided safe passage for the lighthouse keepers during rough weather on the lake. The piers are open to foot traffic and they are a popular site for sightseeing as well as fishing. I walked on the pier several times and saw a fisherman who had caught a 10-12 pound salmon!

I met many wonderful people at the Grand Haven State Park campground. A lot of them were local to the area and they all wanted to hear about my travels as well as offer advice on places to visit in Michigan. One of their suggestions in Grand Haven was a little hot dog stand called Pronto Pup. They warned me about long lines, but let me tell you it was worth it. A Pronto Pup is a hot dog on a stick, but unlike a corn dog it is deep fried after being dipped in a light batter: they were delicious! Grand Haven was a wonderful stop and I would highly recommend it anytime you are on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

My third destination of Lake Michigan was Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The lakeshore encompasses a 35-mile stretch of Lake Michigan’s eastern coastline plus the two islands of North and South Manitou. Located about 25 miles west of Traverse City, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was established by Congress in 1970 to protect the towering dunes, glacial landforms, sparking lakes, and temperate forests as well as the maritime and agricultural history of the region.

The name “Sleeping Bear” has its origins from a legend of the Anishinaabe people. A long time ago, a mother bear and her two cubs left starvation in Wisconsin and swam across the great lake in search of food. After a long swim, the two cubs became exhausted and drowned within sight of shore. The heartbroken mother bear waded to shore and climbed the bluff to lie down and look over the water that had claimed her cubs. However, soon two islands (North and South Manitou) rose out of the water where the cubs had died and the legend is that the bear still lies there looking after her cubs.

The deep water Manitou Passage, the channel between the islands and mainland, was an important and busy maritime channel on Lake Michigan. The passage provides one of the few sheltered bays between the Straits of Mackinac and Chicago, but hides dangerous shoals and sandbars which claimed many ships. In 1871 Congress created the US Life-Saving Service and soon stations were built on Sleeping Bear Point as well as North and South Manitou islands. For over 45 years, courageous surfmen and keepers rescued over 178,000 people from shipwrecks until the US Life-Saving Service merged into the modern US Coast Guard which patrols the Great Lakes today. I visited the Sleeping Bear Point US Life-Saving Service Museum where you can still see the equipment the men used and the buildings they live in.

The historic town of Glen Haven played a key role in three of Northern Michigan’s economic eras: lumbering, agriculture, and tourism. The growth of the town can be traced back to visionary businessman D.H. Day who started lumbering and shipping cordwood to Chicago via the lake. When old growth timber became harder to find, he got into the fruit orchard business and established a fruit cannery in Glen Haven. When the automobile became more prominent, he used his influence in state government to bring tourism to Glen Haven. Today, the Glen Haven Historic District has many restored structures that are open to visit including the cannery, general store, and blacksmith shop.

One of the most popular things to do at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is the Dune Climb. At 460 feet, the Sleeping Bear Dunes are the tallest on the Great Lakes and the National Park service allows you to hike the dunes all the way to the bluffs overlooking Lake Michigan. Right out of the parking lot you are faced with a 284-foot wall of glistening white sand. The view from this initial dune over the parking lot towards Glen Lake is spectacular. If you continue after this initial wall of sand, the hike is a series of plateaus and dunes entirely in soft sand which makes for tough walking. I made it as far as the highest point of the climb with the lake in view, but I didn’t proceed all the way to the bluffs.

Port Oneida was originally settled by German and Prussian immigrants who logged and farmed this port community. By the 1890s, the timber was cleared out and poor soil conditions forced many residents to leave. Today the Port Oneida Rural Historic District preserves the agricultural history of the region and is the nation’s largest publicly owned historic agricultural landscape. There are numerous trails for hiking and cycling in this historic district where you can visit some of the remaining structures from the community.

While at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, I stayed at the Platte River Campground. It is a beautiful, modern campground operating by the national park service and the sites are very private. Adjacent to the campground was an old railroad grade that led right to the shoreline of Lake Michigan and it was a nice, easy two-mile hike.

Wilderness State Park

My last stop on Lake Michigan was the furthest north you can go on the Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Located just eleven miles west of Mackinaw City, Wilderness State Park offers hiking and camping along a 26-mile-long stretch of pristine Lake Michigan shoreline. This area offers views of the 170-year-old Waugoshance Lighthouse, the Straits of Mackinac, the “Big Mac” Bridge, and you can finally see the other side of Lake Michigan with the Upper Peninsula within sight. Here at the Straits of Mackinac is where Lake Michigan meets Lake Heron.

I once again had a great campsite nestled between hardwood and pine trees with a spectacular view of Lake Michigan from my site. The lake water was noticeably clearer further north and with the winds coming out of the northwest, there were quite a few whitecaps on the lake as well. There was also quite a bit more shipping traffic visible at this location on the lake with several large cargo ships visible on a daily basis passing through the straits. Wilderness was also a great location for making a day trip to Mackinac Island which shall be the subject of a separate post. I am sorry to say goodbye to Lake Michigan which has been spectacular for the past two weeks, but the Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and Lake Superior await to the north!