Back to West Michigan Day 3: Silver Lake!--one of my favorite places
Today we got to experience as my sister keeps referring to it: "Pure Michigan." I guess some of our photos today do describe the "pureness" and beauty of this Great Lakes state.
It has been fun to be a tourist in a state that at one time was home. We started out our day by driving to New Era, Michigan (which is about a half hour north of where Rob and I used to live during our Muskegon era years). We visited the Country Dairy which was a fun agri-tourism place I had never heard of nor been to.
We found the cheese room pretty interesting. Some of the aged cheese was only four days younger than our oldest child! That is some pretty sharp cheddar cheese.
We saw how the cows are cared for and milked. We got to pet some baby calves and learn about the artificial insemination process. We ate at the country store and enjoyed some delicious grilled cheese, cheese curds, and all you can drink chocolate milk.
Then we headed about fifteen minutes towards the towns of Shelby and Mears. We went to one of my favorite places in Michigan--Silver Lake. When I was five years old, my family plus my aunt and uncle and their kids rented cottages on Silver Lake. It was the first vacation I have clear memories of--and apparently I had more memories than my sister. I seem to recall so many details everyone else forgets about. I loved climbing on the dunes, swimming in Lake Michigan, and playing with my cousins during those two years we went to Silver Lake.
Then Rob and I took our youth group camping at the state park when we were youth leaders in Fruitport. I am pretty sure it was in August of 2001. I remember playing soccer on the beach and hiking the dunes.
We went on the Mac Woods Dune Rides which are these large dune scooters that ride an eight mile stretch all over the dunes. I rode them when I was five years old and also with our youth group. I believe I also rode them with my friends from high school on one of our camping trips. Anyway Mac Woods has been in existence for 87 years and still family owned!
We learned the Silver Lake sand dunes were formed when the lumber industry was booming around the time of the Great Chicago Fire. After cutting down massive amounts of trees, miles of eroding sand was left. The sands are constantly shifting and eroding into Silver Lake. Some cottages have even been buried over the years because of it! I love standing on top of the dunes and seeing a vastness of sand--and not much else. We had our share of running up and down the dunes. After our dune ride, we watched some of the ATVs, jeeps, and pick up trucks riding up and down the dunes.
We ended our day at the state park on Lake Michigan by the Little Sable Point Lighthouse. This has always been my favorite Michigan lighthouse.
Our kids loved playing in the water, jumping the waves, and building sand castles on the beach. I even swam in the lake and the water temperature was not too cold. I think we all enjoyed relaxing and being near the water. I think my kids still forget it is not an ocean because my son keeps asking about the tide.
It was such a great day spending it with my family in one of my favorite places in Michigan! It would have been even better if Rob could be with us, but we are thinking of him as he is taking his own adventures right now in India.
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