Monthly Archives: September 2022

Silver Creek Pathway (Pere Marquette State Forest, MI)

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

The 54-mile Pine River, a tributary of the Big Manistee River, undulates gently through the modest hillocks of northwest Michigan, making for a popular floating destination—but also a few decent hikes. The Silver Creek Pathway—a nearly four-mile loop that is … Continue reading →

Posted in Easy Hikes, Michigan | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Empire Bluff Trail (Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, MI)

Posted on September 18, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

What happens when a combination of glacial recession, wind, and erosion produces a perched dune atop a glacial moraine atop geological debris from the most recent Ice Age? The result, in Michigan’s Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, is the Empire … Continue reading →

Posted in Easy Hikes, Michigan | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dune Climb (Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, MI)

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

Spanning 65 miles of the eastern shoreline of Lake Michigan, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is easily the most interesting National Park Service unit on Michigan’s lower peninsula. Once buried under the Continental Ice Sheet during the most recent Ice … Continue reading →

Posted in Michigan | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Bailly/Chellberg Trail (Indiana Dunes National Park, IN)

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

A prominent French Canadian fur trader, Joseph Bailly settled in the Indiana Dunes area in the early 19th century, establishing a trading post in 1822 near present-day Porter, Indiana. Decades later, Swedish immigrants Anders and Johanna Kjellberg purchased 80 acres … Continue reading →

Posted in Easy Hikes, Indiana, Indiana Dunes National Park | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dune Succession Trail (Indiana Dunes National Park, IN)

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

Arguably the most impressive sight in Indiana Dunes National Park, the moderately tall sand dunes at West Beach can be explored on this short, 0.9-mile loop. The Dune Succession Trail—one of three loops in the West Beach area—traverses coniferous and … Continue reading →

Posted in Indiana, Indiana Dunes National Park, Moderate Hikes, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dune Ridge Trail (Indiana Dunes National Park, IN)

Posted on September 4, 2022 by Andrew Wojtanik

Wedged between a railroad, two steel mills, a power plant, and several junkyards, Indiana Dunes National Park looks and feels world’s apart from other iconic settings that also bear the national park name: the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, etc. The draw … Continue reading →

Posted in Indiana, Indiana Dunes National Park | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments