Warren Dunes State Park is a 1952 acres (7.9 km²) Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

 state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

, located along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 in Berrien County

Berrien County, Michigan

Berrien County is a county located in the extreme southwest of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 156,813. The county seat is St. Joseph....

. The park's large sand dunes and lakeshore beaches make it one of the most popular of Michigan’s state parks with an average of about one million visitors annually.

Large sand dunes are found throughout the park. Among the park's dunes are Mt. Fuller, Pikes Peak, and Mt. Edwards, with the most significant being Tower Hill, the highest point in the park, which stands 240 feet (73 meters) above the Lake Michigan. This dune is the one that is most visible to visitors, many of whom delight in scrambling up its slopes and rushing back down again. Easy access to the dunes make it a popular location to practice the sport of sandboarding

Sandboarding

Sandboarding is a board sport similar to snowboarding.It is a recreational activity that takes place on sand dunes rather than snow-covered mountains....

.

The dunes and beach area was preserved by a local businessman, Edward K. Warren, who originally purchased the site as a favor to a friend who had encountered significant financial difficulties. By 1930, the Warren Dunes area had been taken over as a state park.

Facilities and activities

• Hiking
  Hiking
  Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
  
  : The park has six miles of winding trails.
• Cross-country skiing
  Cross-country skiing
  Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
  
  
• Swimming
  • Beach House
• Picnicking
  • Picnic Area
  • Picnic Shelter
• Playground
  Playground
  A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...
  
  
• Camping
  Camping
  Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...
  
  
• Concession/Store
• Metal Detecting
  Metal detector
  A metal detector is a device which responds to metal that may not be readily apparent.The simplest form of a metal detector consists of an oscillator producing an alternating current that passes through a coil producing an alternating magnetic field...
  
  : Metal detecting is permitted in designated areas of the park; however, any found items are subject to review by park staff and may be retained pending further investigation.
• Hunting
  Hunting
  Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
  
  : Most of the park north of the beach area is open to hunting for part of the year.

Other activities

• Wildlife watching
• Skygazing: Clear skies allow viewing of more stars than in most populated areas.
• Clay painting: Walking about a mile up the creek which empties into the lake just south of the beach leads to large beds of light gray clay, through which the creek flows. At this location uninformed visitors partake in an unsanctioned and environmentally damaging practice. Mixed with the creek water, clay makes body/face paint which can be worn home, but is much more commonly washed off by another swim in the lake. Clay painting has a negative effect on the park environment due to the amount of clay that is introduced to the creek water through man-made erosion and dispersion. Clay particles in the water create a turbid water environment
  Turbidity
  Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye, similar to smoke in air. The measurement of turbidity is a key test of water quality....
  
  . Turbid water can also have negative health effects if ingested; the higher the turbidity level, the higher the risk that people may develop gastrointestinal diseases. These health hazards are of particular concern given the number of small children and infants who play in the creek at the lake shore.
• Creativity: This park is big and often not crowded, so a great testing ground for beach activities and equipment. For example, it was the inspiration and development site for the Beach Buggy, a self-contained mini-kitchen which could be wheeled to a family's water-side picnic site.

External links

• Warren Dunes State Park Michigan Department of Natural Resources
  Michigan Department of Natural Resources
  The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is the agency of the state of Michigan charged with maintaining natural resources such as state parks, state forests, and recreation areas. It is governed by a director appointed by the Governor and accepted by the Natural Resources Commission...
  
  
• Warren Dunes State Park Metal Detecting Map Michigan DNR
• Warren Dunes State Park Protected Planet (World Database on Protected Areas)
• Warren Dunes Area Photographs at pbase.com