Sleeping Bear Dunes Part I

Well I thought I had a great night of sleep last night but it turns out I slept wrong and I could barely walk on my right leg all day (never mind the blisters I developed from my 15 miles off hiking yesterday). I think my cot is to blame. I got this cot off of Craigslist in Denver and it looks like one of those folding stadium chairs except it’s a cot. I slept on it for 6 weeks last year and as the weeks went on I managed to snap off/rip many of the things that hold the fabric together. So basically it’s now just a pile of metal with fabric loosely draped over top.

So let’s recap: Day3= sunburned, gritty with sand, stung by various forms of demon creatures, starved and limping.

(Lake Michigan)

I headed south out of the UP and drove over to the Western Shores to Sleeping Bear Dunes. Mom had texted me and told me the Blue Angels would be at the Traverse City Cherry Festival (where I was passing though) so I got really excited. However, I got there at 10:30 and the show didn’t start til 2:00 and the traffic was horrible and I was overwhelmed at all the people so I kept driving (as much as I could in a traffic jam). As many towns as I drove through, the one I remember most is Charlevoix, MI. They have petunias lining both sides of the roadway from city limit to city limit (5 miles!) I thought it was cute when I first drove in and then I realized that it just kept going. What an amazing town that obviously takes pride in themselves.I arrived at Sleeping Bear dunes and my first stop was the gift shop. Last year I went to over 20 National Park sites and never bought more than a postcard but for some reason I went on a shopping spree and bought not only postcards, but also a bumper sticker and a 1000 piece puzzle! Thanks to Ken Burns’ (no relation) documentary there is now National Park Scrabble, Uno, Monopoly plus a plethora of other branded merchandise. I wonder if you’re allowed to register with the National Parks for gifts…

I limped out of there and headed out to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. There really were only a couple overlooks worth stopping at. Most were just pull offs explaining the flora.
I almost didn’t make it out of one overlook with my clothes on (I know, typical Kelly). Anyway, this overlook allowed you to walk out on the dunes on a “boardwalk”. I headed out but as soon as I left the forest I felt like I had entered the Sahara. The wind was blowing so hard it completely covered the boardwalk and children were running around screaming with their eyes closed because the sand was literally blowing into your skin. I of course trudged on to take pictures. The farthest overlook was tame but at the next overlook the wind was whipping so hard I swear it almost blew my clothes off! I ended up plastered against the railing trying to keep the front of my shirt down while I held onto my shirt and shorts behind my back with my one hand and took pics with another. I didn’t dare ask anyone to take my picture for fear of what would happen. They had to be hurricane force winds. Of course there was also another one of those sand cliff trails that Michigan seems to be so fond of. I stumbled out of there and tried to catch my breath and see what was left of my skin.
I got off the scenic drive and headed to the Dune Climb. Luckily the wind wasn’t nearly as bad because I was on the land side of the dunes and not the lake side. By this point I didn’t want to do anything but figured I’m there so I have to do it. It wasn’t like Great Sand Dunes in CO. Nope this was one straight up dune (that's the sky in the pic below, not the lake). I got to the top of the main dune and took some pics and went back down. No way was I doing more than that. It was refreshing to turn around at the top and see Glen Lake and a cute little farmhouse in the distance. Almost worth the climb… almost.