Sleeping Bear Dunes

Heading west we stopped at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore which is reknown for miles and miles of massive sand dunes.  It far exceeded our expectations.

We strolled out to the overlook that towers above the lake.  At this point you're standing on an enormous dune that literally drops straight down 450 ft.  As you peer over the edge it is such a sheer drop that you cannot see the bottom.  You have this sensation of being pulled down the slope into a void.  It's pretty intense!

Teenage boys were racing each other down and up the hill.  One young man made it to the top in 12 minutes (far faster than the estimated 60) but could barely catch his breath.  Had we not been eager to press on to Ludington, I might have been willing to give it a try!

We headed south another 80 miles to Ludington state park and were lucky to get a site.  This park is the largest and most popular park in the entire state system. 

While we'd rate the Michigan parks an "A" for location and several attributes, they get a "C-" for privacy. They shoehorn you into these postage sized sites where you're close enough to decipher if the kid next door is eating lucky charms or fruit loops for breakfast.  That's when you know your rv trip is coming to a close and you start to look forward to home!

Before the sun set, we squeezed in our last hike in our journey.  On all beaches in the park dogs are verboten but the ranger told us of a lost beach hidden in the woods.  We hiked 30 minutes along the Ridge Trail and came upon a perfect little spot complete with a park bench.  Fin was thrilled and swam more than we've ever seen him swim before.  The sun was just at the point in the sky where the rays danced off the limbs and leaves and you're entirely content to take a deep breath and gaze across the lake.