Michigan State Parks 100: Ludington

The most popular state park in Michigan, Ludington State Park offers year-round adventure for individuals, couples, and families. After visiting the park for a weekend just to try to fit it all in, we realized this is one you can come back to again and again for fun and relaxation. It is a busy park though, so be prepared to be patient during the peak season. Check out our video review.
#hikecampgo #mistateparks #mistateparks100
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[@ncmike225]

Wonderful ! Thank you! I had an Army friend in South Korea, 142nd MP Company in Yong San (Seoul).... named Chuck. He was good lloking.... we were both in early 20's. I hope he is well.... his (now) old friend from 1973. But, again, thank you for this wonderful video! Best withes..... Mike

[@SakibAhmed04]

beautiful place

[@Trekers]

It really is! Super busy during peak season, but there's a reason it's so popular. Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@voulasepeda7271]

My hometown, I am very lucky to have grown up there.

[@Trekers]

That is lucky. Great area! Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@JohnMarucci]

Great review. Still my favorite MI State Park. Thanks for the great series!

[@Trekers]

Thanks, John. We had both been to this park before but hadn't really spent time seeing all that it offers. We were glad we got to spend an entire weekend there! -Ari

[@bretkelso2498]

I live in ludington love it here ride my bike out there all the time

[@bretkelso2498]

You guys should try taking the ss badger sometime

[@Trekers]

It would be great to live close enough to that park to enjoy it as much as you can. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Trekers]

Funny you should suggest that. We just did! kzbin.info/www/bejne/b17JhXyBaal_Z80

[@bevwyckoff2451]

As a 3 week summer resident in Ludington, you nailed it! We love it as our 2nd home. Thank you for showcasing beautiful Michigan

[@Trekers]

That's great to hear; glad you enjoyed the video. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@LTBudd]

Great video! I'm going to layout some more of the history. The dam was built in the 1850's, and the location where it is today is not the original location. The first dam was built higher up the river, near where the concession stand is today on Hamlin Beach. It was a longer dam and made of wood and earth. It was destroyed in the late 1880's after intense rains. The village was not destroyed, only the lumber mill, the shingle mill, and the boarding house/general store. These were originally owned by Charles Mears, but he sold off his interests in Hamlin and all other developments by the late 1870's. There were still houses in Hamlin, and some residents continued to live in Hamlin for a while, but because of its remoteness, eventually left. The Sable River originally did not flow out where it does today. Originally, the river flowed out between the beach house and the lighthouse. Closer to the lighthouse though. Mears had the river diverted and a harbor built so boats could float up into the harbor and lumber could be loaded there. Unlike in Ludington, where shallow bottom barges were used to float the lumber out to weirs and where the lumber then was loaded onto lake vessels. Mears eventually would have a hand to play in Ludington Harbor as well. After Mears sold his interest in Hamlin, the company that purchased his interests in the village, Pardee, Cook, and Co., continued to run the mill and boarding house. However, after the dam broke, and the mills and boarding house leveled, they left town. In their absence the Hamlin Dam Association began. A group devoted to maintaining the dam on Hamlin Lake. By this point in time, the late 1800's, the lake's importance for fishing and hunting had grown. By the 1890's, hotels and resorts began popping up along the lake. Prior to 1912 there was supposedly one additional break, but the 1912 break resulted in the current dam at its present location. That said, the dam has changed significantly over the intervening decades. The lighthouse, by the way, was established by virtue of Charles Mears while he was a Michigan State Representative for the area. He served from 1861-1862. The metal casing that envelopes the lighthouse was added later, after the structure began failing. Despite what you mentioned that there were no roads to Hamlin is wrong. The road to Hamlin, indeed, the road that wound its way up along the Western shore of Michigan was called the Great Lakeshore Highway. In many places, Lakeshore Drive throughout Michigan shadows its path. This road existed from the Village of Lincoln (also a Mears Development), which would have been along the Lincoln River where the Lincoln Hills golf course is today, up along a great sand dune called Mount Baldy, and followed a similar path from "First Curve" on M-116 up to the State Park. The problem is, after about 1892 the village of Lincoln was abandoned so, from then until the 1930's, there wasn't a way to easily get from Ludington to the Lighthouse. Even when the road did exist, it was sand. Prior to the CCC even beginning any work, an effort was begun to set aside much of the land for a Federal Park. Much of the land that had, up to that point been in private hands was being purchased. Even the dam was transferred from the Hamlin Dam Association to the Federal Government. Prior to this, the land was used partially for Military training, with the base camp being where Lincoln Hills golf course is now. When the CCC did eventually begin their work in the 1930's, the first thing they had to do was remove the old buildings, as there were still homes from the village of Hamlin that existed. M-116, the road out to Ludington State Park was also a major project of the CCC related to the State Park. It represented the first modern road that traversed the sand dunes. In order to build the road, deep channels were created through the hills along the old Hamlin Road, the approach and bridge over Lincoln Lake were redone and modernized, and in an effort to build the road itself, a rail line was setup alongside the road so that materials could be quickly brought in to pave it. The road didn't actually use concrete nor asphalt, but another material. Some of the interesting features that used to exist in the park, which are no longer present, are shelters that were along the trails, some of the slabs can still be found. A slide that used to go through one of the campgrounds, eventually the slide degraded and was removed. And a girl scout camp over in the south side of the park along Hamlin Lake. Unfortunately, one summer several of the girls scouts were massacred and so, no one is allowed near the site anymore.

[@Trekers]

Lots of great info. Thanks for watching and for sharing this additional history!

[@NomadicInNature]

We hope to travel to Michigan some day. Thanks for all the great info! This place looks amazing.

[@Trekers]

This is a great park. And we have a lot of them scattered all over the state. Let us know if you ever make it to Michigan, we'd be happy to offer some suggested routes!

[@budsutt]

In Michigan it's known as "The Queen of the State Parks"

[@Trekers]

That makes sense. It's a huge park with something for just about anyone to do. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@heysweetybirds]

I'm in the process of booking campgrounds here in MI to explore. Love the fact that I can trust you two for a review! Thanks so much!

[@Trekers]

That's such a great compliment. Thanks for watching and commenting! Let us know if you have questions about any locations in particular. Happy to help of we can.

[@PensHensandHoovesHomestead]

Thanks for the info. Headed there for camping soon - hope to do some salmon fishing!

[@Trekers]

Good luck! Glad you found the video helpful.

[@kevinduveneck1504]

That lighthouse keepers residence looks just like the one across the lake at Rawley Point lighthouse in the Point Beach State Forest north of Two Rivers Wisconsin

[@Trekers]

Interesting. I wonder if they're from the same era and that's why they look so similar? We've not been to Rawley Point but we'll add it to our Wisconsin list. Thanks or watching and commenting! -Ari

[@nealfry2230]

Can Hayden Panettiere take an Ice Water Bucket Championship there? Hayden Leslie Panettiere is So Adorable and Very Beautiful and Hayden Panettiere's my Miracle Saving Dolphins and Whales. Now Hayden Panettiere can be my Lighthouse For Your Glory Hayden Panettiere. Besides, " I'll Always Love you Hayden Panettiere " " Most Sincerely, " Neal Patrick Fry from Detroit, Michigan.

[@johnnylightning1491]

Another good one guys. Keep 'em coming. How many have you done now?

[@Trekers]

Thanks! We have completed our visits to all 103 state parks. Now we just need to get the videos caught up! Starting with our next video (on Wednesday, Nov. 13), we will be starting our tour of the Upper Peninsula, covering the 20 parks there that we haven't published yet. Our very first video in the series covered Tahquamenon Falls State Park -- kzbin.info/www/bejne/nXPIiXmfrN2WlbM -Ari

[@SadlyKaren]

Great vid! You do such a great job showing and talking about the state parks! This was one of my favorite parks this year. I camped there for two weeks and hated leaving. Out of curiosity what type of kayak to you have?

[@Trekers]

Thanks, Karen. A lot of people really like Ludington State Park, and now we know shy. We travel with an inflatable kayak -- the Sea Eagle 330. It's a bit small but we're both little and it folds up to fit in the back of our Roadtrek! (The 370 is a little bit bigger model.) We have been happy with its quality and durability so far; Sea Eagle seems to make nice products. -Ari

[@SadlyKaren]

Trekers I thought the kayak looked like a sea eagle. I have a razor lite. I just sold a 385 fast track for two people and bought an Oru Bay St.. It’s an origami foldable. Because I camp mostly by myself. That one is much lighter, but super durable. Again....great job. I hope someday I will have the pleasure of meeting you as you trek around Michigan next camping season.

[@markbajek2541]

LSP is getting around $2.5 million tossed into it in 24, an expansion of the parking area at the beach for 60 more cars and they intend on repaving most of the roadway , rebuilding the walkway on Skyline trail adding a few feet more of bike paths to the beach rather than having bikes use the road with traffic. Also Stearns Beach in Ludington is probably not going to be free in 24 . $5 for a half day and $10 for a full day is what is planned so expect some of that now free beach traffic to migrate to the two state park beaches and the M116 highway other side of the dunes type beaches.

[@Trekers]

Good update, thanks for sharing. The area is so popular and it sounds like it's only growing in popularity. Also seems like even MORE advanced planning might be necessary soon. Thank you for watching and commenting!

[@busygirlable]

Sterns Park is a free park. There is no charge to use this beach or park at this beach in 2024.

[@gregrupar135]

Almost impossible to get a site

[@Trekers]

True, and a common problem with several of Michigan's popular parks. People wait for that 6-month buzzer to go off and pounce immediately. We often don't like planning that far in advance because we don't like locking in travel plans so much. Thanks for watching!

[@webcompanion]

The damn won't last forever, it will eventually break. Just look to Midland, Michigan now.... I liked this video otherwise. Ludington is a gem!

[@Trekers]

It is scary to start looking around after something like Midland happens and realize how many damns there are and what's downstream from them! Glad you liked the video. Thanks for watching!

[@LTBudd]

Completely different situation, John. The dam has been improved many, many times. Even the earthen sides have been reinforced with concrete. The dam does not utilize man-made improvements to ensure that banks are maintained. Instead, the banks are in a deep valley. The spillway is more than sufficient, even in the past, when we endured monsoon level rains in the 1980's, the dam was fine. So, unlike the dam you're referencing, this concrete dam is exactly as wide as the river. Whereas the dam you're referring to utilized an Earthen dam as well as a concrete dam. In that case, the Earthen dam gave out. This dam has existed since 1912. Unless there is a catastrophic failure in the concrete, it will not fail. If by chance it does fail, the worst it will do is maybe wash away a bridge. This portion of the Sable River flows directly into Lake Michigan. In addition, the damn only raises the lake level by 12', not it's entire depth. Hamlin Lake at it's deepest is 60 foot. Even when it did break in 1888, it destroyed three buildings, and the boarding house/general store only because Pardee, Cook, and Co. bolted from town and chose not to repair it. The building wasn't technically a total loss, just severely damaged. The mills were a loss. No one died. Other than the boarding house, no other homes were lost. The campgrounds are far away from the river, nothing would happen to the campers or campgrounds.

[@webcompanion]

@@LTBudd That was a heck of reply and quite the learning experience for me. I learned a lot - now have greater knowledge on this stuff which is fascinating to me as an engineer (automotive). Thanks for all of this, sincerely.