Trails: (unnamed)
Hike Location: Warren Dunes State Park
Geographic Location: south of Bridgman, MI (41.90786, -86.60391)
Length: 4.3 miles
Difficulty: 8/10 (Moderate/Difficult)
Date Hiked: October 2023
Overview: A loop hike over sand dunes and along a Lake Michigan beach.
Park Information:
https://www2.dnr.state.mi.us/parksandtrails/Details.aspx?type=SPRK&id=504
Hike Route Map:
https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=949172Photo Highlight:
Directions to the trailhead: In southwest Michigan, take I-94 to Red Arrow Highway (exit 16). Exit and go south on Red Arrow Highway. Drive Red Arrow Highway south 2.3 miles to the state park entrance on the right. Turn right to enter the park, pay the entrance fee, and drive the main park road to the large beach parking lots at its end. The hike starts at the far right (inland) side of the last (northern-most) beach parking lot.
The hike: Established as a state park in 1930, fantastic Warren Dunes State Park protects 1952 acres of sand dunes and adjacent land along Lake Michigan. The park is named for local businessman Edward K. Warren, who purchased the land in 1879. Warren later established his namesake foundation that developed and managed the dunes before they were a state park.
Today Warren Dunes anchors the southwest corner of Michigan's vast state park system, and it is actually closer to Chicago than Detroit or Lansing. The park is one of Michigan's most popular state parks with over 1 million visitors each year. Many of those visitors come here in the summer to access the park's Lake Michigan beach, so try to plan a spring or fall weekday visit to avoid the crowds but still get decent weather for hiking. I found the park nearly deserted when I came here on a chilly and breezy Monday in mid-October.
In terms of amenities, the park has a huge 222-site developed campground, a large swimming beach on Lake Michigan, several picnic areas, and 6 miles of hiking trails. The route described here forms a loop through the main dune area. Note that the difficulty of this hike is much higher than you would expect for a hike of this length and 200 feet of elevation gain: the soft sand that forms most of this hike's treadway makes for tricky footing and slow going.
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| Heading east from the beach parking area |
3 trails start from the northern-most beach parking lot. One trail heads down to the beach; it will be our return route. Another trail starts north into the woods before angling right to climb Mount Randall; that trail is not used on this hike. You want to start on the trail that heads due east, climbing through soft sand with Lake Michigan at your back. Trails at this park are unmarked, but major intersections are identified by numbered posts. Starting this direction provides the most direct route to post #2, and it gets the hardest climb of the hike over with first.
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| Climbing through soft sand |
The trail climbs steeply through bare soft sand. The wall of sand in front of you might occupy most of your attention (and your breath), but be sure to take an occasional peek over your shoulder: the views across Lake Michigan behind you get better as you climb. At 0.6 miles, you reach a saddle between Mount Randall on your left and Tower Hill on your right. Continue straight to descend even more steeply than you climbed.
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| Looking back at Lake Michigan |
0.9 miles into the hike, you reach post #2, which marks a trail intersection near a picnic shelter and a parking lot. A Michigan historical marker to Edward K. Warren, this park's namesake, also stands here. To continue this hike, turn left to begin heading north on the interior side of the dunes.
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| Post #2 |
At post #3, angle right where the trail that climbs Mount Randall goes left. For the next mile the wide dirt trail heads north through a flat wetland area with the sand dunes through the trees on your left and Painterville Creek on your right. Dense lowland forest grows here, and some wet areas will need to be negotiated if it has rained recently. I saw 3 deer while hiking this section of trail, and what this part of the hike lacks in scenery it more than makes up for in ease.
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| Hiking along the wetland |
Just shy of 2 miles, you reach post #4 and another trail intersection. Turn left to begin climbing on a moderate grade. Although this area is in the sand dunes, the sand is stable enough to support a dense forest, and the footing is better than the soft sand you climbed up before. Pass posts #5 and #7 in quick fashion, continuing straight both times.
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| Interior side of dunes |
The trail gets narrower as you climb through the heavily forested dunes, but avoid steep side trails that exit right or left. At 2.4 miles, you exit the forest as you reach the top of the dunes. This point gives a fantastic view down to Lake Michigan, and it provides that one-shining-moment feel that you typically only get when entering the beach area of an oceanside hike.
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| Looking down to Lake Michigan |
Now back on soft sand, the trail descends steeply and curves right to reach a trail intersection at post #14. Turn left to continue heading for Lake Michigan. Topping one final dune deposits you on Lake Michigan's beach. Turn left to begin hiking south along the beach with Lake Michigan on your right.
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| Hiking along Lake Michigan |
The final segment of this hike is a beach walk that will take you back to the beach parking area. Strong winds buffeted me on my visit even as several sea gulls seemed to enjoy them. The lake-level beach is completely flat, but soft sand again makes for slow going and tricky footing. At 3.9 miles, when the parking lots and beach structures come into view, angle left to climb slightly away from the beach, return to the parking lot, and complete the hike
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