tybeebeth wrote: OK, this will probably just add fuel to the fire. We were looking at Muskegon and Lakeport State Parks. Any comments pro or con?
Lakeport is a very nice park. It's about ten miles north of Port Huron, and is right on the Lake. The park and campground are two separate locations with the campground being about a mile north of the park (which is primarily a day use area) and separated by the village of Lakeport. The campground is also split into two - the north and south campgrounds. The north is older (dirt and gravel pads) with more of a "family" feel to it (pop-ups, tents, small trailers, etc.) and has a lot of playgrounds, etc., hence a lot of kids. It is basically right on the beach. The south campground seems to attract the "older" crowd and less kids. It's very peaceful, and tends to appeal more to those with bigger rigs since the pads are paved, and the sites are very large and well defined. The beach is a short walk through the woods.
If you come over to the Lakeport area, you may also want to stay at Algonac State Park on the St. Clair River (about 40 miles further south). Nice campground, again in two parts - the Riverview (right on the river) and Wagon Wheel (back in the woods). If you like watching freighters close up, this is the park for you.
Both parks have electric only at the sites.
tybeebeth wrote: OK, this will probably just add fuel to the fire. We were looking at Muskegon and Lakeport State Parks. Any comments pro or con?
Muskegon has two campgrounds, the Lake Michigan campground and the Channel campground. I like the Lake Michigan campground because of the shade and very close to an excellent beach.
I've never stayed at the Channel campground, but have been through it. It's been quite a while, but I don't remember much shade and quite a bit of sand. Campers like that campground because of the boat traffic in the channel.
Lakeport also has two campgrounds. I like the north campground, a little more shade for one thing. I can't remember how the beach was.
MichDoc's description of it is about how I remember it.
We are the opposite...we prefer the channel section of Muskegon. There is too much shade in the other section. There is plenty of shade to be found in the channel section, but it's not as dark feeling as the other. The pads are paved, but there is a lot of sand so of that bothers you then you will not like it. We like being able to walk the channel. You can take a short walk to Muskegon Lake and there is a nice swimming area there. Or you can walk maybe 1/2 mile at the most down the channel to the big lake and there is a nice little beach area there as well. Muskegon is our favorite.
tybeebeth wrote: OK, this will probably just add fuel to the fire. We were looking at Muskegon and Lakeport State Parks. Any comments pro or con?
Lakeport is a very nice park. It's about ten miles north of Port Huron, and is right on the Lake. The park and campground are two separate locations with the campground being about a mile north of the park (which is primarily a day use area) and separated by the village of Lakeport. The campground is also split into two - the north and south campgrounds. The north is older (dirt and gravel pads) with more of a "family" feel to it (pop-ups, tents, small trailers, etc.) and has a lot of playgrounds, etc., hence a lot of kids. It is basically right on the beach. The south campground seems to attract the "older" crowd and less kids. It's very peaceful, and tends to appeal more to those with bigger rigs since the pads are paved, and the sites are very large and well defined. The beach is a short walk through the woods.
If you come over to the Lakeport area, you may also want to stay at Algonac State Park on the St. Clair River (about 40 miles further south). Nice campground, again in two parts - the Riverview (right on the river) and Wagon Wheel (back in the woods). If you like watching freighters close up, this is the park for you.
Both parks have electric only at the sites.
X2!!
Both Lakeport and Algonac SP are very nice. They are quite crowded during the summer months so you should make reservations early.
I stay at the Lake Michigan campground at Muskegon State Park. The campground is decently wooded, shady and tucked behind a dune. Pay attention to the site size because some of them are hard to get into with a rig of any size. The beach is nice and even on Memorial Day weekend the place is fairly quiet. There are plenty of hiking trails and even a historical block house to wander through. The channel campground is as posted previously, very sunny and sandy and an excellent place for the campers who like to fish, watch boats, and walk the channel. The two campgrounds are only a couple miles of Lake Michigan shoreline apart.
Btw, every year we have a bash Michigan State Parks thread and it gets old fast. I enjoy the SP's and have had better stays than the private campgrounds that charge twice as much. But I like camping for the "nature" not the gimmicks the private campground use to get you into their parking lots. The Lake Michigan campgrounds, to me, are the nicest ones in the system and the busiest.
We have camped at almost every MI SP campground on the west coast from Grand Haven to St Ignace and in the UP from the International Bridge to the Porkies. I agree, the CG fees are too hi but the natural beauty of MI makes you forget the costs. Some parks are better than others but over-all, they are well maintained and user friendly. I'm not sure why a few responders are so negative on MI SP's. That's fine, it just affords us more opportunity to reserve a site.
depends on where your going exactly, between grand rapids and kalamazoo there is hidden ridge rv resort right off us131, very nice place, stay there all the time, north of grand rapids there is a nice rv resort in stanwood, just west of us131, river ridge rv resort, over by the lake shore near ludington there is camers cove rv park, and poncho's pond camgground, further north there is a real nice KOA in petosky, and further north there is a koa in mackinaw city, and another called mackinaw mills campgound just a few miles away. we don't stay at the state parks, to cramped of sites, and sometimes alot of rif raff there
DON-B2 wrote: depends on where your going exactly, between grand rapids and kalamazoo there is hidden ridge rv resort right off us131, very nice place, stay there all the time, north of grand rapids there is a nice rv resort in stanwood, just west of us131, river ridge rv resort, over by the lake shore near ludington there is camers cove rv park, and poncho's pond camgground, further north there is a real nice KOA in petosky, and further north there is a koa in mackinaw city, and another called mackinaw mills campgound just a few miles away. we don't stay at the state parks, to cramped of sites, and sometimes alot of rif raff there
Everyone has their own preferences, but I feel so bad for the campers that have a bad taste in their mouth from the MI state parks. Sites are too cramped? Wow, we've experienced the exact opposite - noticing smaller (more expensive) sites at the private ones. As for the riff-raff, we must have been lucky over the years avoiding them. On every trip we meet several nice campers - a very large reason we enjoy the camping community so much!
BTW, we've never stayed at Poncho's Pond, but we did drive through and it seemed like a very nice place. I know several people that camp their regularly.
2007 Rockwood Roo 23ss
Derek '77
Tina '78
Brianna '04
Dominick '07
Maximus (slobbering camping buddy)
Riff raff?? Interesting. Maybe I qualify as such then.
Admittedly we did have a bad experience at Waterloo, but I do believe if you camp closer to the big cities downstate, you will get more of a weekend party crowd. I normally only camp up north, and "up north" for me begins around mile marker 200 in I-75.
Give me a state park over private any day.
Brian
P.S. To keep this post moderately on topic, I should mention that the 4th edition of "Michigan State & National Parks" by Tom Powers is out. I can't say is a substantial improvement over the 3rd edition, but if you don't have one and you enjoy Michigan State Parks, it's a must buy.
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