Northport, Michigan: Leelanau State Park

July 2024, weekdays and weekend, 5 nights, campsite 42

One of the amazing sunsets from in front of our campsite in Leelanau State Park

This was our first time camping in this campground. We absolutely loved it; however, the campsite information online is highly inaccurate. I am sharing some information, and a few photos of campsites to assist future travelers. Getting into the campground is a bit tight, and I would not suggest it for anyone with campers over 25 to 30', even though their website lists 10 sites as accommodating at least a 30' unit (3 of them say 35 to 40'). We previously owned a 30' Montana 5th wheel, and we would not have taken it to this campground. Another thing to keep in mind when choosing your site, is whether you have kids or not. The east end of this campground was definitely more peaceful than the west end during our stay.

Beautiful view out the front window of our camper in Leelanau State Park!

Campsites

We did not choose a site on the water, as all of the water sites, except one, say they only accommodate tents, pickup campers, vans, or trailers less than 20', and our trailer is 25'. We chose site 42, which says it can accommodate a trailer up to 30'. You could only put a 30' trailer on site 42, if you do not plan to use your fire pit, and/or you do not have slide outs. We had to finagle our camper in the position we ended up with, and then we had to back up closer to the fire pit when we departed to make the turn.

Campsite 42 in Leelanau State Park

In order to use the fire pit, we could not back up any farther than we did on site 42, because of our slide out. If we had not wanted to use the fire pit, we could have backed up all the way to it to get off the road farther. Parking parallel to the road would not have worked for us, because there are large trees next to our truck to the left of the screened tent that would have been in the way of our slides.

Campsite 42 in Leelanau State Park

We had an amazing view out our front window, and this campsite is pretty secluded. It was level enough that we did not need to use any leveling bocks for the position we parked our trailer in. We were able to partially extend our awning for partial protection from the sprinkles of rain during our stay and falling tree debris.

Above: Campsite 21 in Leelanau State Park
Below: Partial of campsite 23 in Leelanau State Park

There is more room on several of the water sites (21, 22, 23...) that are listed as only accommodating up to a 20' trailer, than there was on site 42, which says it can accommodate a 30' trailer. The campsites are not actually bigger than campsite 42; there are just not any tree obstructions on most of the water sites.

Above: Campsite 38 in Leelanau State Park
Below: Campsite 47 in Leelanau State Park

Campsite 43 is the largest site near the water (next to the site we were on and across the street from the lake). We were actually surprised to see a very tall 30' motorhome and a pickup truck squeeze onto this site during our stay. I did not get a photo of that site, although I have included a couple more campsite photos above.

Leelanau State Park lighthouse and campground beach

Honor, Michigan: Platte River Campground in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park

July 2024, nine nights, campsite 114

We have camped in this park a few times, and visited the general area many times. You can find more info by clicking on labels of interest at the bottom of this post, or via the following links: Platte River Campground September 2023, and Platte River State Forest campground July 2016. 

Campsite 114 from road in Platte River Campground

Campsite 114

Although campsite 114 was not our first choice when making our reservation, this turned out to be a great site. It is a spacious site, with good privacy compared to some of the campsites in this campground. The space between the fire pit on this campsite and campsite 116 is partially open, and the rest of the sides are blocked by trees and hills.

Campsite 114 in Platte River Campground

Before we arrived, we were a bit worried about the amount of tent room on this site, as the online photos looked like it might be boxed in by hills without much ground area. We have a trailer; however, we had two tent visitors for a couple of nights during our stay. We had also hoped to be able to put our screened in tent over the picnic table. The space worked out perfectly! We were able to put one tent on each side of the screened gazebo. The rules for this park do not say anything about the number of tents on a site; it only says no more than 6 people, only 1 trailer type unit, and only 2 vehicles per site allowed.

Platte Beach

Manistee, Michigan: Lake Michigan at Manistee/Lake Michigan Recreation Area

July 2024, 4 nights, weekdays – weekend, campsite 73

We have stayed in this campground a few times, and you can find more information in my previous posts from: July 2021 and August 2016. This is a brief post with a bit of updated info.

View of Lake Michigan from Lake Michigan at Manistee National Forest Campground

Facility information

This campground has two reservable loops: Oak and Orchid, and two First Come, First Serve loops: Violet and Hemlock. There are flush toilets in Hemlock and Orchid loops, only. There is fresh water and a trash dumpster in each loop. There is no electricity, dump station, or showers. Generators can be run during non-quiet hours. It was very hot during our stay, yet this was the quietest experience we have ever had at this park, in terms of generator use.

Campsite 73 in Lake Michigan at Manistee National Forest

Reservable campsite in Oak loop, #73

Our campsite had a reserved tag on it when we arrived. There was also the addition of new pink signs on each post in the reservable loops, stating that the sites could be taken for one night, if there was no reserved tag present. Reservations need to be made 24 hours in advance, so if a site was not reserved, anyone arriving could stay for one night, and potentially longer, if no one reserved it online for the following days.

Honor, Michigan: Platte River Campground in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park

September 2023, Sunday - Tuesday, two nights, campsite 221

This was a last minute stay for us, at the end of Labor Day weekend, so our campsite choices were limited. We were glad to have been a part of the trial group for the new notification system being tested, so we received an email when there was a cancelation. Campsite 221 is not a campsite we would choose again, if we had had more options to choose from. It is not an awful campsite; there are just many better sites in the campground.

Campsite 221 in Platte River National Park Campground

The area around the camper is somewhat private on this site; however, the main area where the table and fire pit are located is not the greatest. 

Mackinaw City, Michigan: Campground, Breweries, Hiking, Swimming

September 2022, weekdays, two nights

View from top of the hill behind site 2 in French Farm Lake Campground

French Farm Lake campsite 2

This is a free campground with no services; not even water or a trash receptacle. There is a board at the entrance with information about how to register and tag your site when camping. Information I had read online said there are seven campsites in this park; however, we only saw six sites. 

Above: the drive out of campsite 2 in French Farm Lake Campground
Below: Road back to the higher numbered sites in French Farm Lake Campground 

The road in to the campsites and boat launch is not big enough for two trailers to pass side by side, and we were fortunate that we did not encounter any traffic when we arrived or departed. Our son was with us when we arrived, so we rode in his car to check out the sites before driving in with our trailer. When departing, if you want to turn right onto Trails End Road from French Farm Lake Road (west toward I-75), be aware that this is a sharp turn by a hill, and it is not doable with a trailer in tow. It is easy to turn left, and then turn around at the park, or do a U-turn at Wilderness Park Drive with a small trailer.

Above: view of campsite 2 in French Farm Lake Campground
Below: campsite 4 in French Farm Lake Campground

Ludington, Michigan: The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast

April 2022, The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast, Carpenter Room, 1-night, weekday

If you want to stay near downtown Ludington, the choices are small inns/motels, bed and breakfast type lodging, or a rental property through places like AirBnB. The closest campground, Cartier Park, is about 1½ miles from town. More campgrounds and chain hotels are located outside of town. Although we do not often stay in bed and breakfast lodging, we chose The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast because it is only a few blocks from town, and the reviews were all excellent.

Fireplace in the common area at The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast

Reservations and arrival

I made our reservation with Jen over the telephone. You can also make a reservation online; I called because I had a couple of questions. Check-in is between 4PM and 6PM, and we arrived shortly after 4:00. Jen provided a warm welcome, a brief overview of the amenities, and area information, as needed.  

Carpenter room in The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast

Carpenter room, floor 2

The Carpenter room is also room #1; the first room at the top of the stairs on the second floor. We did not have any trouble getting to the room with our one small bag. Jen and Dan both offered assistance with luggage during our stay, if needed. This guestroom looked exactly as described and pictured online. I loved the silky soft sheets and pillow quality. The guestroom was comfortable and incredibly clean.

Carpenter room in The Lamplighter Bed & Breakfast

Plush bathrobes were provided, along with bath amenities: soap, shower gel, shampoo, and a hairdryer. We were the only guests the night of our stay, and we had a peaceful evening. 

Norton Shores, Michigan: PJ Hoffmaster State Park and nearby areas

August 2021, 3 nights, weekday - weekend

Sunset over Lake Michigan at PJ Hoffmaster State Park.

We hiked in this park July 2015, although this was our first time camping overnight. When I made our reservation, I did not realize alcohol is prohibited in the campground from April 1st through Labor Day. I thought it was odd that alcohol is allowed in the day use area, and not the campground (staff told us this during check-in). 

Creek behind campsite 1 in PJ Hoffmaster State Park.

Arrival and check-in

This was the quickest state park check-in we ever experienced. A staff member met us outside to write down our truck plate numbers on a piece of paper. He had me take this to the person inside who completed the check-in. She quickly found our reservation, gave me the rules, and provided our site papers. The only rule emphasized and highlighted was the rule about no alcohol.

Our neighbor was almost finished parking his trailer just as we got to our site. Many more campers arrived that evening. We were surprised to see so many people arrive on a Thursday. Before COVID, we often arrived before most of the weekend crowd, and always enjoyed a quiet first evening. This year, it seems more people have Fridays off than ever before.

Campsite 1 in PJ Hoffmaster State Park. My photo above taken from in front of restroom.
Photo below is from DNR website taken from back of site.

Campsite 1

This is a decent size campsite, and it is on the creek. The ground cover was a combination of grass and dirt, and it was level. 

Walkway to creek behind campsite 1 in PJ Hoffmaster State Park.

Center photo in this trio is campsite 1 in PJ Hoffmaster State Park from DNR 
reservation site. Top and bottom photos are mine showing pine trees are gone.

This site was not as private as expected, because trees that showed in the online photos had been cut down. These apparently had been cut some time ago, because we did not see any stumps, and the area was overgrown. The growth helped create privacy; just not as much as we had expected from the bushy pine trees in the photos. We had also expected the bushy pine trees to create a sound buffer between our trailer and traffic on the road in.

Campsite 1 in PJ Hoffmaster State Park.
Electrical box is on the edge of campsite 2.

All in all, we liked this campsite. We could see a small glimpse of the creek when we sat in our chairs on the mat at the back of our site, and it was easy to walk back to the creek. 

Looking toward swimming area from north where Little 
Black Creek comes out in PJ Hoffmaster State Park.

Lake Michigan Recreation Area / Lake Michigan at Manistee, Michigan

 July 2021, 3 nights, weekday-weekend, Violet loop campsite 87

Looking toward Lake Michigan at Lake Michigan Recreation Area from trail

Arrival 

This was our second time staying in this campground. You can find more information about this park in my post from August 2016. I am sharing new info here. Last time, we made a reservation in Orchid Loop, and this time we arrived on a Thursday afternoon without a reservation. We had thought this would be a good time to arrive before the weekend; however, that did not turn out to be true. There were apparently many vacationers at the campground because it was [almost] full, and many people left on Saturday. We got the last available campsite when we arrived, and it almost started a fight. From what we overheard, it sounded like the person across the street had been saving the site with some belongings on it for his friend who was not arriving until the next day. Someone who had arrived just before us, had taken the only other site available. When the person who had been saving the site saw us coming in with our camper, he decided it was not right to save the site, so he removed his stuff (from what we overheard). Apparently, the guy before us did not like the site he had ended up with because he walked by and there was a heated discussion between them while we were parking. I do not know what site he was on, but I did not see any campsites in this loop that looked worse than the one we ended up with. When we had driven through the other loops before Violet loop, it actually looked like people were savings sites in Hemlock loop, too.  

Campsite 87 at Lake Michigan Recreation Area

Campsite 87

Our trailer is 25', and the tar pad on this site is barely long enough to park our trailer and truck on. Just like last time, if the posts at the end of tar were a bit shorter or farther back, we could have backed up farther and still kept our tires on the pavement. There is actually plenty of room to park on this site, if you did not have to park on the tar. Parking on the tar is about the only rule we saw enforced at the park, and they are particular about that. In fact, the host stopped to tell us to move our truck before we had a chance to move it back over after unloading our wood. We also saw him stop at the site next to us during our stay to have them move a vehicle out that was not on the tar.

Campsite 87 at Lake Michigan Recreation Area

There was just enough room for our awning to open. We were glad that our camper door is at the back of our trailer, and not the front.

Muskegon, Michigan: Muskegon State Park Channel Campground

June - July 2021, 13 nights, campsite 116

This was our first time staying in the same spot with our camper for so long. We had a few rainy days, and an overall great stay.

View from campsite 116 at Muskegon State Park
Motorhome in the distance is on site 118

Channel campground, second loop, campsite info

We chose this site because it was one of the few sites available that had enough room for our camper and boat, and also is fairly close to the water. We prefer sites 108 and 109, as they are closer to Muskegon Lake; however, both of those sites were reserved when we made our reservation. It probably would have been worthwhile if I had checked the sites every now and then for cancellations, because site 109 was empty during most of our stay. Live and learn!

Campsite 116 at Muskegon State Park

Side view from inside camper
Campsite 115 in distance

Manistique, Michigan: Manistique Lakeshore Campground

 May 2021, Weekend - holiday, 3-nights

Manistique Lakeshore Campground looking inland from site 49

We had initially planned to stay in this campground May 2020, and our trip was canceled due to COVID-19 when many things were shut down. By the time we decided to replan our trip for 2021, our first choice campsite (#41) was not available, so we made an online reservation for site 49. The price had increased $5 a night since the year before. Another sad point for us was that a nearby business we had planned to visit in 2020 had closed after the pandemic hit: Mackinaw Trail Winery & Brewery.

Arrival

We arrived a bit before check-in time, and our site and paperwork were both ready. This was the most efficient check-in we have experienced so far this year.

Campsite 49 at Manistique Lakeshore Campground

Campsite 49

This campsite has full hookup with 50 amp power. It is the end/last water site. We had chosen site 41 the year before, because the online photos show that site 41 has a better view of Lake Michigan with better beach and water access. The online photos on the reservation site are great; however, they are a few years old, and the view behind every site is more open than shown. After arriving, we decided we like site 49 better than 41! 😊

Campsite 49 at Manistique Lakeshore Campground

I cannot fit all of the photos that I took in this post. You can see more in the Manistique Lakeshore Campground photo album on Facebook. 

Campsite 49 at Manistique Lakeshore Campground

All of the campsites along the water offer some privacy with trees in between. Site 49 has more side privacy than most, although this site is also visible from the entrance and campground office. This did not present any problems, since it was mostly quiet in the campground during our stay.

View from inside camper on site 49 at Manistique Lakeshore Campground