Scenic Ridge Trail – May 24, 2014
In the spring of 2014 we spent Labor Day weekend camping in the Channel Campground in Muskegon State Park. Before packing and heading home on Labor Day we decided to hike the Scenic Ridge Loop. The trailhead for this hike is at the lower Block House parking area on Scenic Drive.
To start on the trail you can either cross the steep valley off from the lower parking area by the block house or head down hill along the road to the unmarked trailhead. Watch for the white “State Park Closed to Hunting” sign on the post shown above at the start of the trail.
After following the trail up the ridge you come to the open sandy area with trails heading off in several different directions shown above. Most of this loop is fairly well marked, but we could not find anything here. We took our best guess and headed down the hill to the right.
A little further down the trail we found a post that told us we were headed in the right direction.
The kids were more excited about climbing this sandy hill than we were. Lucky for us the trail turned off to the right at the base.
Reid decided that he didn’t want to walk anymore, so he did a lay down protest in the middle of the trail. We kept walking and when he realized that it wasn’t working he was up and running after us. Where do they learn this?
At about a 0.5 mile the trail comes out by Scenic Drive before heading back into the woods.
After this the trail runs through the “Youth Camping Area.” There are a couple pit toilets here if anyone needs to make a pit stop.
We followed the gravel road through the empty camping area until we saw the post above pointing us up the hill to the right.
After the camp the trail climbs up to an area that is a little more open up on another dune ridge.
Near the top of the ridge it opens up to the right and you can see a view of Muskegon Lake to the east.
Time again to give the little legs a rest.
Later the trail opens up to the west and you can a view of Lake Michigan between the dunes.
Starting to descend back down off the ridge. Just past here you get back to the open sandy area at the start of the hike and then backtrack to the trailhead.
We took the short cut across the steep valley back to the car.
After the hike we walked up the hill to check out the Blockhouse.
Inside the top of the Blockhouse. There really is not much of view from up here anymore.
The GPS track from our hike. The loop was just under 2 miles and it took our crew about 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete it.
To download or print this trail map and guide click here >>
For more on the hiking in Muskegon State Park see: Explorer’s Guide 50 Hikes in Michigan: Sixty Walks, Day Trips, and Backpacks in the Lower Peninsula
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