LAKETOWN TWP., MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Mar. 26, 2025) – A popular way to get from the shores of Lake Michigan inland is now off limits.
On Wednesday, Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission staffers closed the wooden steps that allowed Laketown Township Beach goers to climb back up towards the mainland. The Commission itself voted a week earlier to take those stairs out, as well as install snow fencing, in order to keep people off of a fragile dune there.
This latest action included affixing yellow caution tape at the bottom of the stairs, as well as along landing areas up the walkway, and signs cautioning these unsafe steps will be shortly installed. The stairs itself should be gone by the end of April.
Laketown Township Beach is that municipality’s oldest park, coming from a gift of land made 99 years ago. These steps that are being removed were initially installed in the early 1990’s.
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Here’s how to get to and from the beach, courtesy of the Laketown Township Parks & Recreation Dept.:
There are two main sets of stairs at the beach at the west end of 142nd Avenue. The first set is from the parking lot up the dune. These remain open, though
they are often covered with sand.
The second set of steps to the south (left if facing Lake Michigan) is what is now closed. Stay off these steps.
To get to the water, take the first set of stairs from the parking lot. Follow the marked path, staying on the trail so as not to damage the dune. Go down the path through what is called “the bowl,” a steep drop with a flat bottom. Stay off the edges and do not disturb the dune grass. Once at the bottom of “the bowl,” you’ll see another small hill. Go up and head to the lake.
Heed the no trespassing signs and follow other rules of the beach, including no fires.
To get back up the dune, stairs are no longer an option. Visitors must walk back up through “the bowl.” It is a difficult walk because of the soft sand. There are no handrails or any assistance to get back up.
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