Day whatever of our eight-day loop through Michigan brought us to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, and to a question the park practically dares you to answer: if you start up the Dune Climb, can you make it all the way over to Lake Michigan? The signs warn you. The people staggering back to the parking lot warn you. We went anyway.
The Dune Climb
The Dune Climb looks manageable from the bottom. It's a wall of sand a couple hundred feet high, kids are running up it, how bad can it be? Then you start climbing and learn the fundamental rule of dune hiking: every step up costs you half a step sliding back. By the first crest our calves had opinions. And here's the thing the postcard doesn't tell you: the top of the first climb is not the top. The dunes keep rolling, crest after crest, and the lake you came to see stays hidden until you've committed to a round trip of close to four miles of soft sand.
Making it to Lake Michigan
We kept going, and the payoff at the end is real. You come over the last ridge and Lake Michigan fills the horizon, that improbable Caribbean blue it pulls off on sunny days, with a beach at the bottom that you earned twice over. Standing there with sand in everything we owned, the debate about whether this was a good idea ended. Fair warning for anyone tempted: the walk back is the same distance, the sand is just as soft in reverse, and there's no shortcut. Bring more water than you think you need. We saw people out there with none, and the dunes are not kind about it.
The scenic drive and the overlook
After the climb we drove the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, a 7.4-mile loop through the forest with pull-offs along the way. The one everyone comes for is the Lake Michigan Overlook, a platform perched about 450 feet above the water on a bluff of sand. It might be the best view in the Lower Peninsula. It's also the site of the park's most famous bad decision: the bluff people run down to the water, forgetting the climb back up is steep enough that the park posts a sign about rescue fees. After the Dune Climb, we admired that one strictly from the railing.
Moomers, because we earned it
The day ended in Traverse City at Moomers Homemade Ice Cream, which regularly shows up on lists of the best ice cream in the country. It sits on the family's dairy farm, the cows are right there, and the scoops are enormous. After a few miles of sand hiking we felt zero guilt. Whatever flavor you're loyal to, order it here and it'll be the best version of it you've had.
Worth the sore legs?
Completely. Sleeping Bear Dunes earns the hype, and we say that as Michiganders who are hard to impress with our own state. Do the climb early before the sand heats up, keep a full water bottle per person, and save the scenic drive for after so your reward is a view you don't have to walk to.
Watch the full dune adventure on YouTube to see whether we regretted it in real time. We also send a short weekly newsletter about where we are and what broke this week. The signup form is on our newsletter page.