Saying goodbye to the State Park

… or at least, “see you later.” 

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief

HAMLIN TOWNSHIP — Today, my 9-year-old daughter, Sloane, and I went on a ceremonial hike at the Ludington State Park, our way of saying goodbye to an old friend — at least until next summer. We went out to the park just after noon and hit one my favorite routes, walking above the Cedar Campground along one of the “unmarked trails”, over to the Ridge Trail and back to the bicycle trail.

Normally, I like the solitude of my state park hikes. In this case, the hike consisted of 48 minutes of a little girl letting me know that she is very excited to begin her first day of the fourth grade tomorrow. But, that’s OK, because while the views are always magnificent, and the exercise is always needed, what matters the most is that we created memories together.

Today is the last day that the public will be able to visit the majority of the Ludington State Park north of the Big Sable River until (hopefully) July 1, 2025. Visitors will still be able to explore areas south of the Big Sable River. While I like to keep these things secret, I have to admit that the trails south of the river are actually great trails that offer an amazing experience of the variety of ecosystems the park has to offer.

Beginning Tuesday, the park will undergo $4.6 million worth of repairs and enhancements. According to Jim Gallie, Ludington State Park manager, the closure will affect the area north of the Big Sable River.

“This means that camping, hiking trails, picnic areas, the playground, boat launch and other amenities north of the Big Sable River will be closed to the public,” Gallie said.

Park enhancements planned including paving the park’s main road and the Hamlin Lake day-use area parking lot, expanding parking at Lake Michigan and warming shelters, and enhancing traffic and pedestrian flow at the park entrance. The Skyline Trail will also be renovated. The projects are being funded by federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) COVID relief funds provided to the state of Michigan. The state is required to commit to a project with the funds by Dec. 31, 2024 and the projects must be completed by Dec. 31, 2026.

“This project will have a lot of heavy equipment and large vehicles coming and going,” Gallie said.  “With all the construction activity taking place, we need to ensure that there are no visitors put into harm’s way and that the construction equipment can operate without having to worry about visitors suddenly getting in their way.  This will also allow the construction team to operate more efficiently and safely, which might allow the project to end before June 30, 2025.”

Trails south of the river will remain open.  This includes the Skyline Trail, the south trails, the trails off of Piney Ridge Road, and the boardwalks along the south side of the river.  The three miles of shoreline along Lake Michigan, from “First Curve” to the bridge over the Big Sable, will also be open.

“Amenities will be very limited,” Gallie said. “A vault toilet is available in the Skyline Trail parking lot, but other facilities will not be open.”

Gallie said the entrance booth will be staffed during daylight hours to ensure that people do not enter the park.

“Vehicles will be able to turn around north of the booth, at this time,” he said. “When construction moves to the entrance area, we will have to shut the booth down at the bridge, requiring vehicles to turn around at the amphitheater.”

Visitors who wish to visit  the far northern areas of the park may access the area from the Nordhouse Dunes or by boat on Hamlin Lake. Big Sable Point Lighthouse will be closed during the construction but, again, the area can be visited from hiking from the north.

Gallie said visitors are certainly welcome to visit open areas of the park.

“We encourage visitors to use the southern section of the park, but ask that they carry out what they carry in,” Gallie said.  “We also ask that visitors try to limit unnecessary traffic in the area of the bridge to allow construction equipment easy access to the park.”

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