Earlier this summer, we spent over a week camping at the Jellystone Park near the Silver Lake Sand Dunes close to Mears, MI. It was our third visit to this campground in the past 8 years or so - and we will likely return again in a few more years. The biggest upside of this campground is the location near the Silver Lake Sand Dunes - the only ones in Michigan that allow personal vehicles to be driven on them. There is also access for pedestrians. We were not comfortable risking our tow vehicle on the dunes so we opted out of driving on the dunes, but did take advantage of walking up the dunes (it's quite a workout in the heat of summer). Anyhow, the Jellystone is located right at the heart of the action at Silver Lake - there is a Craig's Cruisers right next door, the lake is walking distance, and a small strip mall with nice shops next door too.
Situated about half way between Muskegon and Ludington, there is plenty to do within a 30-45 minute drive either north or south. We even ventured to Traverse City for Cherry Festival- a drive of just over 2 hours.
As with any campground, there are some things to be aware of. First off, much of the campground is built on hill and many of the sites are not very level. Many of the sites are rather small from front to back as well- we observed several larger units abandon trying to back in to some of the smaller unlevel sites. Being built on a hill, there are some issues where water is concerned. During hard rain, expect a river someplace on your site - if you're a tenter, make sure you set up carefully.
We were unlucky enough to experience a sewer backup problem in the row across from us. It wasn't pleasant seeing the wave of bluish-green sewer water roll through. To be fair, the staff offered to move us, but as it was near the end of our trip and most of the flow was directly under the camper where no one was going to walk or play. Some creative diking and sand placement helped clean things up enough. The old cliche that crap floats downhill is very true in this campground!
The Silver Lake Jellystone also only has one small playground for the kids. This is offset by the busy activity schedule that runs through the summer, especially on weekends. This park has a large staff - they regularly have appearances by not only Yogi, but Boo Boo and Cindy too. The park is kept very clean - even sand that ends up on the paved roads is regularly swept by employees and the comfort stations and pools are well maintained too. Be aware, cell phone reception is very spotty in this area, no matter what the carrier, and there is no wireless Internet access in the campground.
The Jellystone Park Silver Lake is a good place to spend a week exploring Michigan's West Coast.
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