Sawyer, Michigan / Warren Dunes and Local Breweries

September/October 2017, Weekend, 2-nights, Campsite #37

Sunset from beach/swimming area
Photo taken by our son

Arrival and check-in

The office was staffed when we arrived; however, we were not able to check-in because the computers were offline (or something). After several minutes at both computers, the employee said I would need to come back and check-in later. She had our printed confirmation that I had given her, and I was hoping someone would just bring us our dashboard paper later. No one stopped at our site, so I walked back to the office a couple of hours later. There were campers checking in and campers waiting. Fortunately, the employee I had left our information with, had completed the check-in earlier, and was able to just hand me my dashboard paper without me having to wait.

Campsite #37

All of the campsites in this campground are fairly small, and most of them are not secluded. This site says it is 50' long; however, the mowed portion of the site is only about 35' long. The description says that it accommodates a camper up to 30', which is pretty accurate considering only 30 to 35' of the length is usable. (I guess they are counting 15', or more, into the woods behind the site in that measurement...)? Additionally, we had to park as close as we could to a tree on the edge of the site, in order not to be too close to the fire pit. The fire pit is labeled in the photo below, which can be enlarged by clicking on it. Even though we parked as far away from the fire pit as possible, we rolled our awning up one night when the fire was lit and it got a bit breezy.

View of campsite 37 from trail

This site is located next to the hiking trail. The site ground cover was mostly dirt. The site is listed as level, and it is not too far off. We had to put a block under each tire on one side.

Facilities: restrooms, showers, sanitation station

I was impressed with the restroom cleanliness. We have stayed in many state parks where the restrooms are quite dirty, and this campground was nearly full the weekend of our stay. The showers are individual rooms located outside the bathroom area. We did not use the showers. 

Although this campground is open year-round, information online said that the sanitation station closes after Labor Day weekend. I inquired about this when we arrived, and the employee told me it was still open. There are two dump positions, and two fresh water fill lines. We got pretty lucky when we went to empty just after the 1:00 PM checkout time, the day we departed. There were two campers filling with fresh water, and no one was waiting. Three more campers had gotten in line before it was our turn; we waited about 10 minutes, or so. If you have a tall camper, be aware, that there were some low hanging branches overhead at the sanitation station when we were there.

North end of beach; near marker 1

Recreation: beach, hiking

The beach area is very large. There are three different parking lots and restroom buildings. It is over two miles by road from the campground to the beach, and there are not any bicycle trails. The hiking trail through the dunes is a bit shorter distance; however, it is quite hilly.

Foot sign just after marker 3

There are several good hiking trails in the campground. Pay attention to the "foot" signs, if you want to stay on the trail. The first day that we arrived, we ventured for just a short walk down the trail with the hopes of getting a view of Lake Michigan. There is a steep sand hill next to the first "foot" sign. We climbed that hill thinking we would get a view of the lake; however, it was just a trail to nowhere - except the top of the hill!

Hill next to foot sign that led to nowhere

If you turn right after crossing the bridge at the start of the trail, it is a pretty easy hike, until you get to the protected area, and closer to the beach (markers 13 and 14). The view from the top of the dunes is beautiful. 

View near marker 14

Camp store, bus route, local breweries and winery

The camp store in this park was well stocked with many supplies and souvenir items. In addition to essentials and fire wood, they had camp chairs, hats, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and more for sale. Even though we visited off-season, the store was open every time we passed by.

Bridgman bus route

A sign by the camp store had information about the Lake to Grapes bus route that stopped in the park. It said that service was discontinued after Labor Day; however, since the park sanitation station had been open, rather than closed as posted, I decided to call them and check. Unfortunately, they had already discontinued service for the season. We wanted to visit the local brewery, and thought we would take the bus, if it had been running. Later, I realized the bus only went to Bridgman, and would not have taken us to Greenbush Brewing in Sawyer anyway.

Bus stops in Bridgman

Greenbush Brewing Company is less than three miles from the campground area of Warren Dunes State Park. It would be an easy bike ride, if you do not mind riding on the roads. We prefer to bicycle on designated trails, or at least roads with a large paved shoulder. The brewery is located on both sides of Sawyer Road, and there is plenty of outside seating. We got our beers at Greenbush Annex, and sat outside there. The beers were good, although a bit more expensive than we usually see downtown Grand Rapids.

We also visited Lazy Ballerina Winery Tasting Room and Transient Artisan Ales in Bridgman. These two locations are along the bus route, when the Lake to Grapes bus is running. We did not do a complete tasting at the winery, because the wines were expensive (most of the dry reds--my preference--were over $20 a bottle), and the tasting cost was $8. There is a small outside patio at Transient Artisan Ales, and the cost was similar to Greenbush Brewing Company.

Let me know if you have any questions, and feel free to share this post!