Spray Park at Bay City Rec Area Did you know? Bay City Recreation Area, home to the first spray park in Geocaching is a very popular activity in Where to Go Michigan’s state park system, is a great way for families to Welcome safely enjoy water fun on hot summer days. The water park Michigan’s state parks. Caches are hidden to Michigan compliments the large playground situated next to it. State Parks! Greatest Beaches! everywhere. Grab the GPS and start hunting! Harvest Festivals At 101 state parks, 134 state Michigan state parks, with their many miles of shoreline, Combine a celebration of fall, a farewell to summer, and Halloween into one great forest campgrounds and offer some of the best beaches found anywhere. The weekend and you have Harvest Festivals in Michigan’s state parks. Make reservations shoreline at Petoskey State Park recently ranked among six thousands of miles of trails, early. The parks fill up fast for this last hurrah of the season. favorite beaches from around the United States in a survey Stay cool all summer at Michigan’s the opportunities for exciting conducted by The Weather adventures are nearly Channel. great beaches. endless! Learning to kayak is just one of the Canoe, Kayak and Paddleboard many Rec 101 opportunities. The water’s great! Go for a paddle. Many of our parks offer canoe Agate hunting at and kayak rentals. Try the newest craze, Stand-Up Paddleboarding. Muskallonge Lake State Park Board rentals are available at Pinckney Recreation Area’s Silver We’ve got something for Lake beach. Rock hunters come from all over the world to search the waters of Lake Superior for the beautiful agates found there. Muskallonge everyone! Lake State Park on Lake Superior salutes the agate with their Whatever your favorite outdoor Meteors & S’mores annual Rock On Agate Weekend each September. Leave No Trace pastime, Michigan’s woods and waters Mid-August offers peak viewing for nature’s biggest light show, We encourage you to practice Leave No Trace the Perseids meteor shower. Join park staff and local astronomers hold the fun and adventure you’re after. Stargaze the night sky when visiting your park or any outdoor trail or in parks and recreation areas across the state. Enjoy the gooey area. It is easy to do and allows others to enjoy the Rec 101 offers more than 500 goodness of s’mores, then settle in and watch the show. Lake Hudson Recreation Area, Wilderness State Park, and FREE how-to events to get you Port Crescent State Park are considered dark sky preserves and park, including animals that call it home. offer pristine, undiluted night-sky viewing opportunities. Their started, or take your workout Universal Accessibility The Leave No Trace Seven Principles are: combination of dark skies and clear horizons attract amateur outside with our new Fresh Air Fit Most parks offer universally accessible facilities. Brighton Recreation astronomers year round. • Plan Ahead and Prepare programs. It’s all waiting for you at: Area has an accessible beach, trail, fishing pier and an EZ Dock launch • Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces www.michigan.gov/stateparks. that enables individuals in wheelchairs to launch their own canoe or • Dispose of Waste Properly kayak. Get off the grid when you stay at the • Leave What You Find Brighton Recreation Area’s EZ ramp allows solar-powered cabin at Tippy Dam Recreation Area. Ralph A. MacMullan Conference Center wheelchair-bound individuals to launch their own • Minimize Campfire Impacts When you see QR codes like canoe or kayak. • Respect Wildlife this one inside your map, scan Ralph A. MacMullan Conference Center offers a natural, tranquil and Want more? • Be Considerate of Other Visitors them with a smartphone to Rate a park! inspiring setting for nonprofit clubs, organizations, governmental or Visit learn more. Don’t have a QR Let us know how much educational entities with an environmental focus to get away from modern distractions To learn more, visit Code reader? Search QR reader ParkVisitor.com/where-to-go you love our parks at and focus on the task at hand. www.LNT.org CENTER FOR OUTDOOR ETHICS in your phone’s app store. ParkVisitor.com for destination ideas! Rustic Camping in the State Forests • Lake Margrethe Campground near the Manistee and Au Sable Rivers offers great canoeing opportunities. Reservations accepted at this Partners Give Back campground. Fun State Facts The six Little Presque Isle cabins near Marquette offer rustic log cabin FOR • getaways among the picturesque woodlands. • Sanilac Petroglyphs Historic Site is home to rock The Michigan State Parks & Recreation Areas Welcome Map What to Do carvings made between 300 and 1,000 years ago. is created at no cost to the state of Michigan or taxpayers. • Big Bear Lake Campground offers 30 sites on the sandy, north shore of Funding is generously provided by our partners, highlighted Big Bear Lake near Gaylord. ORVing in Michigan State Parks • Michigan is the only state that touches four of here in this map. In addition, 20% of the net proceeds are • Negwegon Back Country Campsites offer four hike-in only campsites in Clear Lake State Park is one of the few state parks where ORV users can the five Great Lakes. donated back to directly benefit Michigan State Parks & • a rustic area of Alpena County. ride from their campsite to a trail head and back. No towing! Recreation Areas. Supporting our partners is also a great way • Elk Hill Equestrian Campground is conveniently located next to the to say “thank you” for their contribution to your state parks. For • Baraga State Park recently opened a new 35-mile ORV route connecting Shore-to-Shore Riding/Hiking Trail. • You’re never more than a half hour from a Michigan more information about the 20% For Parks program and your to Twin Lakes State Park. State Park, state forest campground, recreation area parks, please visit www.parkvisitor.com. • Ride the Bill Nichols multi-use trail from your Twin Lakes State Park or state trail system. campsite to Copper Harbor or all the way to the Wisconsin state line. Disc Golf • Muskellonge Lake State Park’s Pine Ridge Trail is a 49-mile stretch of • Fort Custer Recreation Area’s front nine mixes open holes with elevation • Michigan has the only floating post office in the world. Brought to you by cycle/ATV trail connecting to the Two-Hearted Trail. and technical shots. The back nine’s fairways have a links-style layout. The boat, called the J.W. Wescott ll, has been operating • Silver Lake ORV area in Silver Lake State Park offers the only dune • Clear Lake State Park’s new nine-hole course, “The The winter days may be short, but getting for 125 years. riding in Michigan. About 450 acres are available for ORVing. Memory,” plays through wooded terrain that skirts out on the trails makes them long on fun. the edge of the lake. This course is now wheelchair- • The Petoskey Stone--the official state stone--can be Take in these scenic sites accessible thanks to the stone pathway between found in abundance at Rockport State Park along The Park Visitor Welcome Map is • One of upper Michigan’s most picturesque waterfalls, Agate Falls is holes. Lake Huron. created by Good Solutions Group in located on the middle branch of the Ontonagon River near Trout Creek. • Holly Recreation Area has a few holes in open partnership with Michigan State Parks • Interlochen State Park Launch your boat from Green Lake, then listen to meadows, but is mostly a wooded course. There’s an & Recreation Areas. Nothing in this map should be taken to imply the summer music concerts at Interlochen Center for the Arts. option to play 18 or 24 holes endorsement of products, services, or activities of partners by any • Bond Falls in Paulding tumbles over a thick belt of fractured rock, • Newaygo State Park offers 18 holes on the park’s pro- governmental agency. To become a partner, call (626) 229-9991 or dividing it into many small cascades. quality course. The tight fairways make it a grueling visit www.parkvisitor.com for more information. • Wagner Falls in Munising is nestled among virgin pine and hemlock challenge. trees. A half-mile trail from a parking area leads to an observation deck. • Sleepy Hollow State Park offers a good mix of holes Event • Laughing Whitefish Falls near Sundel is the tallest waterfall in featuring technical, wooded and open fairways. Michigan. Foot trails, a picnic area and observation decks are nearby. Elevation and water also are factors. A Member Of Calendar • Sturgeon Point juts into Lake Huron where waves hide a long, shallow Scan code or visit us online at reef extending a mile past visible land. Visit the historic lighthouse. Your next adventure is waiting for you www.michigan.gov/dnrcalendar at www.michigan.gov/stateparks Don’t miss Kitch-iti-kipi at Palms Book State Park. Truly amazing! Rose Lake Shooting Range 10 Essentials of Hiking The DNR-staffed Rose Lake shooting range near Bath, • Appropriate footwear Michigan, offers 35 stations suitable for rifles, muzzle • Map and compass/GPS Expert Tips loaders, handguns and shotguns (with slugs only). • Extra water and a way to purify it A 10-station Hand Trap Range (shotguns/clay targets) • Extra food and an archery range also are available. • Rain gear and extra clothing Michigan Trails Week • Safety items: matches or a lighter, Each September Michigan Trails Week pays tribute Half-off boating slip rentals a light and a whistle to our vast and varied network of motorized, non- Your next big fishing trip just got better.