Lost Lake Trail – Ludington State Park

This is my new favorite easy trail within a Michigan state park!  When I was talking with other campers at Ludington State Park last week, unanimously everyone mentioned one of the very best things about Ludington was its variety of hiking trails.  I was particularly encouraged not to miss the Lost Lake Trail and I’m so glad I listened to that advice!

There are other places to enter the trail, including from the Beechwood Campground, but I parked at the Hamlin Beach House and started on the path here, past where you can rent canoes, paddleboats, kayaks and rowboats.

I took the first option to the right that skirts Lost Lake on the left and Hamlin Lake on the right.  At this point it’s easy boardwalk walking with just a few steps.  The loop I took is about 1.5 miles total, but as always, it took me much longer than what people usually say it takes.  One couple said they did it in 45 minutes - I left the car at 12:30 and didn’t make it back there until 2:45!

But there are just so many neat places to stop and sit on benches and gaze out onto scenes like these little islands.  I can’t ever just keep walking – I like to linger and truly soak in the beauty of these type of surroundings.  And I usually end up stopping and talking to people along the way as we compare notes about our favorite spots.  I’m not in a race to get through in the fastest time, and these type of things add so much to my enjoyment of walks like this.

These three people looked like they were having so much fun as I could hear them laughing and paddling!

Across the lake you can barely make out the boardwalk that runs alongside the Beechwood Campground – nice sites there with easy access to this and other paths.

This family of swans added a touch of elegance to the rustic setting among the reeds.

I enjoyed watching these kayakers go under this bridge – that white blip in the front of the woman’s kayak in the back is a little dog who looked like he was enjoying the ride also!

I really liked how you could walk right out to the tip of an island and be surrounded by water and the remaining fall colored scenery.

The trail is not all boardwalk, but the shady paths add to the diversity and enjoyment.

I really enjoyed this spot with the many different colored fall trees.  This is most definitely not a trail to be missed when you’re lucky enough to be at Ludington State Park!

There are so many other things I loved about this park – other trails including walking beachside to the Big Sable Point Lighthouse and the Skyline Trail, the dam where I got a kick out of watching the salmon fishing, and the town of Ludington and Pentwater.  I’m trying to catch up with my writing about this and previous parks, but there are just so many things, it’s been hard enough just to see as much as I could possibly see, much less write about them!

But I’m still having fun doing both and would really appreciate hearing tips from readers about their own experiences here and in other MI state parks…