UPDATE: 3/1/2024:
2019 was the 100th Anniversary of Michigan State Parks and we're still celebrating!. Join the Michigan Geocaching Organization (MiGO), the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Geocaching.com for the first official GeoTour in Michigan.
This tour was originally scheduled to run for three years, kicking off on Friday of Memorial Weekend in 2019 and continue through May 31, 2022. The success of this awesome tour has not gone unnoticed. On February 2, 2022, The DNR announced the extension of the GeoTour through September 24, 2024! Join us in making a final push to complete this very popular and very successful GeoTour before the sun sets on it.
Each geocache is in one of Michigan's state parks. The geocaches are arranged by MiGO Region, with twenty-five geocaches per region. The Ticket to Celebrate 100 is available for download from the DNR's Geocaching page. It explains how to qualify for prizes in each of the four regions and for the GeoTour as a whole.
Day use areas of state parks are open from 8AM to 10PM. Geocaching is limited to those hours. Entry into Michigan's State Parks requires a Michigan Recreation Passport. See the Resources section below for more information.
The sun will set on the MSPCGT at midnight Tuesday, September 24, 2024. The MSPCGT will go off the air as a GeoTour and the caches will disappear from the map. There is a lot of construction going on in our State Parks in 2024. Some of the GeoTour caches will have to be pulled earlier. The remaining geocaches in the tour will be archived October 1, 2024. Players will have until December 31, 2024 to claim any prize they have earned. Hiders will be contacted to request removal of the geocaches they hid unless they have made arrangements with park managers and have their own permit in place to keep the geocache in play, with a new GC Code.
Now for some good news: MiGO and the DNR are busy working on a new project that will kick off in the Spring of 2025, code named MSPGT 2.0. Are you interested in helping? Keep your MiGO Membership up to date and stay tuned to the website.
Cache:
This cache was hidden as part of the Michigan State Parks Centennial GeoTour, presented by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Geocaching Organization. Record the codeword printed on the log book and on a label inside the cache container to the appropriate box on the Ticket to Celebrate 100 form. See the instructions on the form to claim prizes.
This is a traditional cache hidden at the posted coordinates. This is a simple traditional cache, but the lack of any sort of hiding place in the dunes (the sands shift and will quickly damage the cache or bury it altogether) made it necessary to place the cache between the dunes and Lake Michigan, in the fore-dune area. While it is indeed a long hike, if you stay between the dunes during your hike, the only really strenuous part is the stairs going to the dunes from the parking lot. The effect of this is that the terrain is higher than some may like, but there is no real way around this as all other areas accessible to the public either already have geocaches or are unsuitable for geocaches. The cache will be a cleverly camouflaged box on a post which will be locked to minimize vandalism.You are looking for a Regular size container. Please return everything as good or better than you found it.
Thank you
The Macho Homemaker
for creating, hiding and maintaining this MSPC GeoTour cache.
Photos by The Macho Homemaker (left); RW and VJ (top and bottom); Andiwr (right); Michigan DNR (center)
Silver Lake State Park:
Silver Lake State Park is an almost 3,000-acre park in Oceana County along the Lake Michigan shoreline. This area includes both dune country and acres of mature forest. The dune ridges and valleys are mostly windblown sand and lack trees, scrub brush and dune grass. The dune area is sometimes compared to a desert. Silver Lake State Park contains more than four miles of Lake Michigan shoreline and boasts a large sandy beach.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Dune Riding
History:
In 1919, Carrie E. Mears donated 25 acres of land for park purposes. The park′s boundary was dedicated in 1951 and a master plan was officially approved in 1964. Now, nearly 2,000 acres of sand dunes are available for exploration and hiking.
Originally named Au Sable Lake, the lake was renamed by lumber baron Charles E. Mears (father of Carrie E. Mears) when, it is said, he threw a silver dollar into the lake and said I christen thee Silver Lake. When settlers first arrived, the dunes were far enough north of the lake that cottages were built on the north shore. Also, on the north shore was a picnic area and a ball diamond that was used in the spring by local schools for their annual picnics. Further west along the shore, a farmer had fields and an orchard.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Dunes at the water′s edge
Geological studies commissioned by the state indicate that the dunes have been here for many thousands of years. Frequent periods of stability and shifting have occurred with the most recent stable period ending between 100-450 years ago, similar to other places along the coast of Lake Michigan. While the logging that occurred in the late 1800′s likely accelerated the rate of shifting, the studies have shown that the current active phase began many years before the settlers and loggers arrived.
Whatever the cause, the dunes continue to shift as much as twenty feet a year toward the Silver
Lake and the farm, ballpark, and most of the cottages have been buried. Today, visitors walk on
the rim of the dunes almost 200 feet above the old orchards and the 1837 shoreline.
Since the founding of the park in 1920, its original twenty-five acres has been expanded several times, most notably in 1926 when over 900 acres of dunes were transferred by an act of Congress to the State of Michigan. This land was officially added to Silver Lake State Park in on July 25, 1949.
Map courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Activities:
The most notable feature of the park is its magnificent sand dunes. Visitors have many options
to explore the dunes. Over 750 acres is set aside for foot traffic only, while 450 acres is likewiseset aside for ORV use. Additionally, the southern portion of the dune is leased to Mac WoodsDune Rides for commercial tours. Hiking is allowed in all non-ORV areas of the dunes, but there are few trails due to the constant shifting of the sands. Other hiking trails are available seasonally in the back dune areas. Please check with the park office for maps and access.
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Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Little Sable Point Lighthouse
The most notable feature of the park is its magnificent sand dunes. Visitors have many options
to explore the dunes. Over 750 acres is set aside for foot traffic only, while 450 acres is likewiseset aside for ORV use. Additionally, the southern portion of the dune is leased to Mac WoodsDune Rides for commercial tours. Hiking is allowed in all non-ORV areas of the dunes, but there are few trails due to the constant shifting of the sands. Other hiking trails are available seasonally in the back dune areas. Please check with the park office for maps and access.
Information:
For more information, reservations and a calendar of events, follow this link to
Silver Lake State Park.
Special thanks to
Tinybird25
for help with this geocache.
Special thanks to Cold Cache Crew and Silent Whistles for the Southwest regional prize.
Resources: