Silver Lake State Park is a public recreation area bordering

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...

and Silver Lake, west of Mears in Oceana County,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. The

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

is composed of mature forest land and over of

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

. Park grounds include the Little Sable Point Light and an off-road vehicle (ORV) area for driving on the sand dunes. 1996 Little Sable Point Lighthouse

History

The park originated in 1920 when 25 acres on the east side of Silver Lake were donated for park purposes by Carrie E. Mears, the daughter of lumber baron Charles Mears. In 1926, the federal government transferred 900 acres to the state, which became Sand Dunes State Park in 1949. Based upon a 1949 master plan, the two were merged, with Silver Lake State Park seeing its new boundaries dedicated in 1951.

Features

The park is wide and long and is divided into three segments: The northern area is an all-terrain vehicle dunes area where private motorized vehicle may be driven, the middle of the park is a non-vehicle area (the Walking Dunes), and the southernmost section is leased to a private operator. The park encompasses the entire western shoreline of Silver Lake, a kidney-shaped natural lake approximately one mile inland from Lake Michigan. The Silver Lake shore includes the park's active dune complex and an emergent wetland area adjacent to the lake in its southwestern corner. The discovery of

Piping plover The piping plover (''Charadrius melodus'') is a small sand-colored, Passerellidae, sparrow-sized wader, shorebird that nests and feeds along coastal sand and gravel beaches in North America. The adult has yellow-orange-red legs, a black band acro ...

s in the northern portion of the ORV area during nesting season has led officials to create buffer zones from time to time to protect the federally endangered species.

Activities and amenities

The park's recreational opportunities include camping, hunting, swimming, hiking, boating, fishing, picnicking, and off-road vehicle driving.

References

External links

Silver Lake State Park
Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Silver Lake State Park Map
Michigan Department of Natural Resources {{authority control Dunes of Michigan State parks of Michigan Protected areas of Oceana County, Michigan Protected areas established in 1920 1920 establishments in Michigan Landforms of Oceana County, Michigan