March 2019 – Camp Michigan

Camping Journal Giveaway

Posted on March 31, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

Keep track of all your camping adventures in a Camp Michigan Journal. Here is your chance to win a free one. You have to be a subscriber to Camp Michigan so if you don’t already get email notifications you can subscribe HERE. Then all you have to do is comment below on this post on what your favorite campground in Michigan is. I will choose a winner at random from the comments. I will announce the winner in a post on www.campmichigan.org on April 15th.

If you want to purchase a journal I have a few available on my website store HERE if they are sold out you can order them from Amazon HERE

I hope you subscribe to email updates so you won’t miss any new posts or giveaways,

(Note that I use a Facebook app for comments, If you are not able to comment be sure you have a facebook account and are logged in on the device you are using to post comments. )

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State Park Modern Campground Opening Dates

Posted on March 26, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

Spring is here and the modern campgrounds are opening for the season. Most of the parks open the first couple of week in April. You can see the Michigan DNR’s list of opening dates HERE I think the dates may change if it is going to be below freezing they may wait a little bit before opening the bathrooms so if you are going to the park opening weekend you might want to contact the park to be sure the bathroom buildings are open if it is important to you.

I am looking forward to this camping season we have reservations at 6 different parks and plan to visit several more.

P.S. if you are wondering the pic above is the beach at Twin Lakes State Park

I hope you will subscribe to email notifications so you won’t miss any new posts,

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State Park March Madness Final Four

Posted on March 25, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

With thousands of votes and hundreds of voters, we are down to our final four state parks. They are all beautiful and popular parks and it’s difficult to choose which one is better but pick your favorite to go on to the final round.

you can see the results of the Top 8 round HERE

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Make sure you don’t miss out on the next round of polls and subscribe to email notifications,

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The Best Freighter Watching Campgrounds

Posted on March 23, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

It’s spring and the ice on the Great Lakes is melting and the shipping season is getting underway. It’s fascinating to watch those steal goliaths peacefully floating by. There are a few campgrounds in the Mitten State that are ideal for watching these titans of the waters.

Algonac State Park is on the St. Clair River with many ships traveling it daily. The first row of campsites face the river and you can sit on your campsite and watch the ship traffic.

Aune Osborn Campground is owned by the city of Sault St. Marie and has campsites that face the St. Mary’s River. It’s an excellent place to watch the freighters traveling through the Soo Locks. The locks are just down the street from the campground so you can head on over there quickly if you want to see the ships raised and lowered in the locks.

Brimley State Park is on Lake Superior and a few miles west of the Locks. The Park is also close to Tahquamenon Falls and Whitefish Point.

Muskegon State Park has some ship traffic that heads into Muskegon Lake. The Channel Campground is on the channel that goes from Lake Michigan to Muskegon Lake and you can watch the Lake Express car ferry heading to and from Wisconson. You can also tour the USS Silversides submarine, USS LST 393 landing ship, and the SS Milwaukee Clipper.

Straits State Park. Although there are not any campsites right on the water you have access to it from the campground and watch the freighters as they pass under the Mackinaw Bridge.

If there are more campgrounds that you think I should add to the list, please leave a comment below.

I hope you will subscribe to email notifications so you won’t miss any new posts,

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Camp Michigan’s Unofficial State Park Handbook

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

Introducing my new State Park Handbook. I have been working on this book for almost a year. I visited all the parks with a modern campground in the northern half of the Lower Peninsula and photographed the bathroom buildings, beaches and other things of interest. I always wanted a book that would tell me the stuff I wanted to know like what are the bathrooms like or what is near the park. I wrote what I think is the definitive guide to helping you decide which state park you want to camp at. If you have been camping for a while or a new RV owner, this is a book that you can use as a resource for years to come and discover new places to camp in Michigan. You can order your copy HERE

P.S. I have plans on writing a book for the parks in the Upper Peninsula and the southern part of Michigan, but it is going to be a few years yet. I hope the sales of this book will help me with expenses to visit the other parks and write reviews for them.

State Park March Madness Top 8

Posted on March 18, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

This round of voting is closed, you can vote for the final four HERE

The sweet 16 polls have finished and we are on to the top 8 round. Did your favorite make it into the next round? You can see the results of the sweet 16 round HERE. Lots of fantastic parks in this round, It was a tough battle between Ludington and Tawas Point, but it beat out Ludington. Pick your favorite in each matchup and the winner will move on to the final four round.

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Make sure you don’t miss out on the next round of polls and subscribe to email notifications,

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Leelanau State Park’s Lighthouse

Posted on March 17, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

Michigans State Parks not only have some of the states most scenic natural beauty but they are also home to some historic buildings. Many of those buildings are lighthouses that have guided captains and their ships for decades. The Leelanau State Park at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula stands the Grand Traverse Lighthouse guiding ships into Grand Traverse Bay. The current lighthouse was built in 1858 replacing the first lighthouse constructed on the point. It was poorly built and only lasted about 6 years. The current lighthouse was deactivated in 1972 when it was replaced by an electric light on a steel skeletal tower. The Grand Traverse Lighthouse Museum, a non-profit group, renovated the old lighthouse in the 1980s and it is open for tours. The times that I have visited, the museum was closed, and I have never been inside but I hope to soon.

Time to announce the winner of the Camp Michigan t-shirt, congratulations to Richard Burr, He was the winner chosen at random, please email at Mike@huronphoto with your shirt size and address and I will send out your shirt.

Be sure not to miss the next giveaway and Subscribe to Camp Michigan

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The History of Orchard Beach

Posted on March 13, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

In the late 1887s, George Hart cleared the land where the park is now and planted an apple orchard, which gave the park its name. The orchard sat on a high bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. By 1892 Hart had built a boardwalk and theater to attract more tourists. With its growing popularitey, A trolley line ran from Manistee for people to visit enjoying the view and sunsets over Lake Michigan.

As Michiganders fell in love with the automobile few people were using the trolly and passenger trains. Trolley service to the park eventually stopped and the site was purchased by the Manistee Board of Commerce which deeded it to the state to become part of the Michigan state park system in 1921. The state built a campground among the apple trees and purchased the dairy farm across the street which is now a natural area and used for hiking trails.

The limestone buildings in the park were designed by architect Ernest F. Hartwick and built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps as part of Franklin D. Roosevelts “New Deal”. The apple trees are gone and large oak and maple trees have taken their place. It would have been interesting camping in an orchard. Could you pick the apples from the trees on your site? Unfortunately, the stairway leading to Lake Michigan is closed due to erosion however the park has been upgraded with some full hook-up sites. The park was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2009, cited as “one of the most intact examples of a Michigan state park developed in the 1930s and 1940s

I hope you will subscribe to email updates so you won’t miss any new posts or giveaways,

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State Park March Madness Sweet 16

Posted on March 11, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

This round of polls are closed, you can vote for the top 8 Here

The first round of polls has finished and we are on to the Sweet 16 round. Did your favorite make it into the next round? you can see the results of round 1 HERE. It is going to be hard to choose between them, but pick your favorite in each matchup and the winner will move on to the next round.

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After you have voted don’t forget to enter the giveaway for your chance to win a T-shirt HERE

Make sure you don’t miss out on the next round of polls and subscribe to email notifications,

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State Parks Centennial Events

Posted on March 9, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg

2019 marks the 100th year the state authorized the Michigan State Parks. To Celebrate many parks have special centennial celebrations or events with special centennial activities. Believe it or not, there are some events starting in Mid-March and in April. You can see the current list HERE Be sure to check back later this spring as I think the different parks will add events as we get further into the camping season.

I hope you will subscribe to email updates so you won’t miss any new posts or giveaways,

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