Last week the camera club set up a trip into the dunes at Silver Lake Dunes State Park. This is the part of the dunes you don't see unless you go on a dune buggy ride with guides.
Lake Michigan on the west, Silver Lake on the east, in between which the Silver Lake Sand Dune Access area consists of nearly 2,000 acres of rolling sand hills 1.5 miles wide and 3 miles long. The park is divided into three sections...the northern part (north of Silver Lake) for off-road vehicles, middle part for hikers, and the southern section is leased to Mac Woods Dune Rides, where we were.
That looks like a neat place that'd be fun to explore. It's interesting to hear of the land management divisions. So are hikers not supposed to go on this section of the dunes unless accompanied by a guide and vehicle? Personally that'd frustrate me. 1.5 x 3 miles isn't that big of an area and would certainly be hikable.
Posted by Toni Lankerd on May 31, 2007 at 12:54 PM
Joel, I think it's done for two reasons. One for the safety of everyone in mind..no mixing of hikers and vehicles. The other reason is for the survival of the dunes, which are very fragile. There is one area we were shown where the sand shifts so much, a stand of Jack Pines is slowly being covered by sand.
This is the only dune area in MI, that I am aware of, where there is actual usual management such as everyone can use and enjoy the dunes. While there are numerous dunes along the whole eastern shore of Lake MI where you can hike without "controls", Silver Lake is also the only place where personal off-road vehicles are allowed. So far it's worked very well!
Toni - ah yes, I remember my visit there around Labor Day last year. A very neat place to visit. That's a fun shot that shows the environment well. Were you allowed to get out and explore any during the ride?
Joel, as Toni says, because they allow off road vehicles there I think the separation is important for the safety of the hikers. The hiking area is not as big as I would like, but it's still a cool place to explore. I have 1 or 2 photos of the area from my trip there on my website, if you care! It's a neat place to visit, but it requires a bit of patience and probably visits at "un-busy" times to get the types of photos I prefer......
Yeah, that makes sense guys. I'm just the type of guy that doesn't care for motor access to places that I'd rather "escape" to. Obviously there are many diverse interests at stake, and something has to give. It's probably best that it isn't a big free for all. At least there's a motor free section too! That counts for a lot photography wise.
Joel, I'm with you on the "escape" part. Fortunately, as Toni mentioned, it's the only area along the entire MI coast that is open to vehicles, so there are lots of other possibilities as well!
CJ...Yes, we were allowed to get out because this outing was set up specifically for photographers. We got out at many areas where there were special points of interest such as unusual tree stumps, on the beach, and on top of Razorback, which is the highest dune in that section of the state park. Stops were also made on request if we saw something of particular interest to shoot.
Joel...we had a blast! This is done every year for the club, so I plan on going again next year.
CJ, it's only a two hour outing, but I will be glad to have you come along next time, as I'm sure others would too! I may talk to the (retired) news photographer who organizes this and see if they might do a fall tour too.
Discussion
8 repliesLake Michigan on the west, Silver Lake on the east, in between which the Silver Lake Sand Dune Access area consists of nearly 2,000 acres of rolling sand hills 1.5 miles wide and 3 miles long. The park is divided into three sections...the northern part (north of Silver Lake) for off-road vehicles, middle part for hikers, and the southern section is leased to Mac Woods Dune Rides, where we were.
This is the only dune area in MI, that I am aware of, where there is actual usual management such as everyone can use and enjoy the dunes. While there are numerous dunes along the whole eastern shore of Lake MI where you can hike without "controls", Silver Lake is also the only place where personal off-road vehicles are allowed. So far it's worked very well!
Joel, as Toni says, because they allow off road vehicles there I think the separation is important for the safety of the hikers. The hiking area is not as big as I would like, but it's still a cool place to explore. I have 1 or 2 photos of the area from my trip there on my website, if you care! It's a neat place to visit, but it requires a bit of patience and probably visits at "un-busy" times to get the types of photos I prefer......
CJ
Hope you had fun Toni!
CJ
Joel...we had a blast! This is done every year for the club, so I plan on going again next year.
CJ
Remind me later about this!!!