Day 7-Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Four hundred foot high sand dunes.

This is not something one sees every day. Maybe the Egyptians and other desert dwellers, but even they don't have the benefit of a massive body of water at the bottom.

Today I went to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. It was recommended to me by several people, starting with my sister. I like sand, and I like waters. I from an ocean town, complete with dunes, but they are just little ones. I was intrigued by the idea of dunes so high, getting to the bottom wasn't feasible.

I started the trip on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. I'd spotted this on Google Maps, and it seemed like it offered the view I was hoping for. Bonus: it's still off-season here, so I didn't have to pay the $10 entry fee. Normally, I would have zero problem supporting a National Park by paying admission, but I'd left my cash back at the hotel so I was doshless. The drive is long, and has a bike lane the whole way round. I was salivating as the one way road undulated and periodically offered glimpses of the views to come. I arrived at the first parking area, which was on the backside of the lakeshore, and was one big set of sandy mounds.

I carried on around to the 'Views of Lake Michigan' lot. This is what I was after. There was heavy equipment in the form of front loaders (JCB's for my UK friends) that were scooping up the foot-deep sand that had blown over the path over the winter. A closer look revealed that there was still a significant amount of snow that was hidden under the sand. It made me wish I could see that place in the winter. The photo ops must be incredible.

Anyhoo...As I got to the top of the path, I saw Frazier descend over the edge. There were a couple of people on the viewing platform above me commenting on his movements.

"Oh look at the dog!"
"Uh! He's off!"
"He's going down!"
"Woop! Whoa!"
"Oooooh, it's all over now!"

I heard all of this before I even got far enough to see over the edge of the slope. By the time I got there, all I could see were his tracks. Then I realized just how high these dunes really are. Wow. I was both overwhelmed, and worried about Frazier. The slope carries on right down to the water. No ledges, fortunately. I looked down to the bottom to see if he was in the water. He wasn't. I tried not to panic, and took my mind off things by snapping a few shots. Still no sign of Frazier. More picures. Lots of whistling. Picture. Scan. Whistle. Then I started heading down the slope. Shit, those things are steep.

I was trying to take in the scenery, take pictures, and look for Frazier the whole time. At one point, I started to call him. I couldn't see him anywhere. I got about halfway down the slope and saw that his tracks had gone left at some point, then disappeared out of sight again. I tried to traverse sideways on the 45 degree bank. This was much harder than walking straight down. One more set of whistling and calling, then finally the people on the observation deck yelled down to me that he was back up top running around. Shit.

Going downslope was pretty easy. Trying to traverse was really hard. Scaling back up was downright painful. My legs were tired from yesterday's ride, and another ride I did this morning. The sand was loose down several inches, so every step I took slid about halfway back again. It felt like an eternity to get back to the top, and by the time I got there I was hot and tired and very out of breath. Frazier was back at the car already. At least he recognizes that as the rendezvous place. He was all tongue-flappy happy when I called him back to me. Thanks dog.

With the reunion over, I was able to focus on enjoying my surroundings. I spent quite a while at this first stop, then went off to explore elsewhere. Jan (the nice local lady) told me about this place called Pyramid Point. I found it on a map and headed there.

It was about a 15 minute hike up the backside of the dune, which was totally unlike anything resembling a beach. The landscape around here is amazing in the amount of different types there are.

Once again, Frazier got to the top before I did, and my efforts to call him back to try and get him on the leash before the apex were futile. I got to the view spot, and a man and his dog said that he'd gone down the slope. Again!? Geez! Oh yeah, another amazing view. Unbelievable.

This time, I saw Frazier waaaaaay down at the bottom, probably another 300-400 feet, in the lake. He was merrily splashing away and no doubt having a big drink. He was so far away that despite me being able to see him, I don't think his 11 year old eyes could see me. I just hoped that he could hear me, so I started whistling and calling again. The man with the dog chipped in with his more booming voice. I was hoping that I wasn't going to have to work my way down, then scrabble back up the second huge pile of sand of the day. Finally, F started to work his way back up. He was completely worked by the time he got to me. I got him on the leash and attached it to a sign post, and turned my attention back to the camera.

Then we went to a spot lower down so Frazier could have a proper swim, I could scour the beach for rocks to bring back to Ruth, and I could simply take in the scale of everything.

An outstanding day.