My visit to Saugatuck Dunes was brief but very enjoyable. I was driving through Michigan and decided to stop for some scenery and an easy hike along Lake Michigan. From the parking area, I followed a trail through the woods toward the shore. Even before I could see the lake, I could hear the waves in the distance, making it sound surprisingly similar to approaching the ocean.
The hike to the beach wasn’t particularly long, but the forest made the lake feel hidden until I was almost there. The trail gradually passed through the trees and sandy terrain as the sound of the waves became louder.
Eventually Lake Michigan appeared through the trees. My previous days in Michigan had been overcast and rainy, so I was happy to finally have a beautiful clear day along the lake. With the waves rolling onto a sandy beach and nothing but water stretching toward the horizon, it was easy to forget that I wasn’t standing beside an ocean.
For some reason, I had always associated gulls with the ocean, but they were everywhere along Lake Michigan as well. Their footprints covered parts of the sand, and the gulls seemed to be the main birds along the beach that day, other than a turkey vulture I spotted circling overhead.
I visited Saugatuck Dunes during the fall, when the water was already too cold for me to consider swimming but the weather was still warm enough for shorts and flip-flops. With the sun out and almost no one around, it was probably a better time for me to visit than the middle of summer.
From photos I’ve seen, these beaches can become crowded during the summer, but during my visit I practically had the shoreline to myself. The combination of dunes, forest, sand, and the enormous expanse of Lake Michigan made this one of those stops that turned out better than I expected.
I hadn’t planned on spending much time here, but Saugatuck Dunes was a great break during my drive through Michigan. Even if you’re only passing through the area, the short walk through the woods to an undeveloped stretch of Lake Michigan makes it an easy stop to recommend.
