Albert E. Sleeper State Park
Huron County first made a park on the premises of modern-day Sleeper State Park in 1925, but it was short-lived, and it became a state park in 1927. It was originally named Huron State Park, but it was renamed Albert E. Sleeper State Park in 1944 after the 29th governor of Michigan. The campground at Sleeper is one of my favorites in the lower peninsula of Michigan, offering over 225 sites surrounded by wilderness. There is also a small playground on site, a modern shower building, and access to water spigots throughout the park. Across M-25 from the campground lies the day-use area, which you can access via car or by crossing the pedestrian bridge that is available only for campers. The day-use area features a half-mile of beach in which you can watch the sun rise or set over Lake Huron. Although the beach does get crowded on peak weekends, you can always find a plot of sand for yourself. Back over in the campground area, there are a few miles of hiking trails that are worth checking out. We also ran into hundreds of tiny frogs and a lively stock of Gypsy Moth Caterpillars crawling on your toes, falling out of trees, and covering your car. I camped here with a friend as a child, and I have fond memories of biking around the campground, running over to the lake first thing in the morning and getting ice cream at the corner store at the end of each night. We surprisingly had great cell phone service here on both AT&T and Verizon cell services, which is great if you are spending a longer period of time here and need to contact the outside world. I can definitely say that I will be back to Sleeper sometime soon, and I’m really looking forward to it.
