Tag Archives: Michigan

Sterling State Park – Review

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This park is located in Monroe Michigan, about ½ hour north of the Michigan/Ohio border right off I-75.  The park is huge!  They have a boat launch that takes you out to Lake Erie, hiking/biking paths, Kayak rental, and large clean beaches.

They regularly comb the beach to help remove any seaweed and anything else that floats up.  There are two beaches, one for the state park area, and one for the camping area, but you can access both.  There’s a huge slide, and for $1 per ride, or $10 all day pass you can ride.  The kids took about 3-4 turns each and had a blast.

About 1/3 of the their campsites have full hook up, which is my preferred method.  No internet/Wi-Fi or cable so the kids we’re a little disappointed.  The sites are large and have a blacktop pad.  The kids had a ton of room to run, and play football.

We were on site 57, which is on the outside ring, on the main drag.  Everyone drives pretty fast through the park, even the park rangers which I was surprised to see.  I was nervous about the kids riding their bikes. The bathrooms and shower’s were pretty well maintained and clean.

What do you prefer, state parks or privately owned campgrounds?

Duck Creek RV Resort – Review

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My son turned 8 this year and to keep the birthday tradition alive we went west.  Duck Creek RV Resort is located right outside the gates of Michigan Adventures park in Muskegon, Michigan.  And it’s well worth the drive for our family.  It’s about a 4-5 hour drive (including bathroom and hungry machine breaks).

The park is beautiful, there’s a lot of woods surrounding the park, and there was even wild turkeys in the woods just on the edge of the park.  (Quite exciting for the kids!)

The pool is made for kids, there’s a zero entry wadding area for them and it’s only 1 1/2 ft deep.  There’s also a water fountain that the kids loved to play under.  That area opens to the larger swim area that goes from 3 feet to 5.  And they had a hot tub!  The first I’ve seen so far, and greatly appreciated!  That empties into the pool so that helps to keep the swimming area warm, and the whole pool is shaped like a duck!

Here’s our comparison list:

  • Activities for the kids – No
  • Pool – Yes and it’s heated!
  • Full Hook Up – Yes
  • Wifi – Yes
  • Cable – Yes
  • Playground – Yes
  • Grocery Store – No, but they do sell ice and firewood
  • Ice Cream – No
  • Paved Roads – Yes
  • Paved Paths – Yes
  • Grass Lots – Yes, and they have flowers
  • Shade Trees – No, there’s a few young trees around
  • Friendly Campers – Yes, and lots of kids and young families
  • Friendly Staff – Yes
  • Overall Clean – Yes

Our site was 40 right on the corner by the pool.  I’d say it’s one of the best sites, there’s another site, #82, is right next to and faces the playground and would be perfect for our next stay. We’re thinking Labor Day next year.  The staff seemed nice and pretty much left you alone.  There wasn’t any planned activities for the kids, but we had enough to do.  All the families and kids we’re very friendly, unlike some other west side parks we’ve been to (River Ridge).

Muskegon is centrally located on the west side of Michigan.  It’s about a 1/2 hour south to Grand Haven, which has awesome beaches by the way, and a great toy store for the kids.  You can also go north to Pentwater or Silver Lake for a day trip and to see the sand dunes.  And then there’s Michigan Adventures right outside of the park and is a theme park with rides and half water park.  We’ve been there 3 times now and it’s fun and not too big like Cedar Point.

Do you ever make it over to the west side of Michigan and where have you stayed? Where do you visit?

(Images: Duck Creek and myself)