Point Beach State Park 2025 01

Thursday of last week was predicted to be a warm winter day. So my wife and I decided to take a road trip. We visited Point Beach State Park to hike the trails and visit the beach.

Key Features

• Rawley Point Lighthouse: This iconic lighthouse is a prominent feature of the park, offering historical significance and scenic views.
• Lake Michigan Shoreline: With six miles of sandy beach, the park provides ample opportunities for swimming, sunbathing, and enjoying the lake views.
• Hiking and Biking Trails: Explore the diverse trails that wind through the park’s forests and dunes, offering varying lengths and difficulty levels.
• Camping Facilities: The park offers a variety of camping options, from tent sites to RV hookups, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in nature.
• Picnic Areas: Enjoy a meal amidst the natural beauty of the park at one of the designated picnic areas.
• Nature Center: Learn about the park’s ecosystem and wildlife through exhibits and educational programs at the Nature Center.
• Dunes: Discover the unique geological formations of the park’s dunes, shaped by the winds and waves of Lake Michigan.
• Wildlife Viewing: Observe a variety of birds, mammals, and other wildlife that call the park home.
• Cross-Country Skiing and Snowshoeing: During the winter months, the park transforms into a snowy wonderland, perfect for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
• Pet-Friendly Areas: Bring your furry friends along to enjoy the park’s designated pet-friendly areas.

Review

When my wife has a day off during the week, we try to find a good place to hike. Several of years ago she and our children visited Point Beach to swim in Lake Michigan. We have also returned to hike the trails. With the possibility of the mild weather, we decided to make the trip again.

The trip would also give us a chance to renew our yearly State Park Pass. After about an hour drive we arrived in Two Rivers, a small town on the edge of Lake Michigan. We drove across the bridges crossing West and East Twin Rivers, to the north east side of town where the State Park starts.

Following Sandy Point Road we travel north through the park until we found the Ranger Station. On Thursday though the station was closed, so we followed instructions on the billboard to purchase our yearly pass online. Then we got ready for our hike by changing our shoes into the appropriate hiking shoes and readying my camera.

Walking north toward the campground we found one of the multiple paths across the dunes to the beach. Point Beach State Park is on Rawley Point, a sandy point covered in sand dunes. A forests of Cedar Trees has grown up on the dunes. To preserve the dunes though the park asks for tourists to use marked paths to access the beach.

Once at the beach we started walking south to see if we could find a good shot of the lighthouse. Though inside the forest the temperature was in the high 40s, the wind on the beach dropped the temperature. Waves whipped up by the wind crashed against the frozen beach.

The ice on the shore built up and resembled the ice shoves that occur on other lakes this time of year. To get some shots, I approached the shores edge and walked on the frozen sand. Waves of water and chunks of ice splashed at the solid banks of ice. This motion which I can only assume continues throughout the winter created a series of ridges that looked almost like frozen waves in the shoves of ice.

During the summer seagulls and sand pipers can be seen here. Thursday however the beach was devoid of their presence. A few other visitors to the park can be seen up and down the beach but the only sound was the wind whipping the sand along the beach. The wind was intense and draining as we walked. So after getting some photos of the beach and lighthouse we decided to walk on the trails in the shelter of the trees.

We returned to the rangers station and planned the rest of our hike. Following the Red Loop we hiked a half mile south and then returned along the same path. We could hear the waves crashing on the beach during the entire hike but little else. The only wildlife we saw were Black-capped Chickadees and White-breasted Nuthatches. We could hear them chirping and saw them flying through the trees.

Point Beach State Park is a great little State Park. The beach probably draws the most traffic but the hiking trails are nice as well. The rangers maintain the trails by clearing the fallen trees and under growth. Some of the trails are considered to be part of the Ice Age Trail, a trail system that consists of thousands of miles of trails throughout Wisconsin.

This year being a mild winter we did not see much snow but I can imagine the trails would be great for snow shoeing. In fact there is so little snow right now only the ice on the small ponds between the overgrown dunes of the forest is a reminder that it is winter.

I plan to return in the future to walk the trails and take photos of the wild life again soon. In the mean time let me know if you have been here or are interested in visiting by placing a comment below. Once again thank you for reading and enjoying my photos.