Rockport State Recreation Area
Rockport State Rec was Michigan’s 100th State Park when it opened in 2012 and is one of the most distinctive parks I have visited in Michigan. The park is 4,200 acres and encompasses an old quarry, lending it an extremely unique landscape. The quarry ceased operation in 1958, closing up shop after they finished their last big project, limestone pillars for the Mackinac Bridge.
When you park in the lot, you can see Lake Huron and bits and pieces of where the dock for the quarry used to be located. The dock is still somewhat intact, and I have been told that it is a popular place to find kids jumping into the water in the summer. From the end of the dock, you can see the boat launch and a huge pile of rocks left over from the property’s days as a quarry. The view from the dock is nice, but the view from atop the monumental rock pile is even better.
Quarries have always been a popular place for rockhounds, as they bring rocks from deep below the ground to the surface for fossil lovers to pick through. If you like searching for fossils, Rockport is the place for you. All around the park are huge piles of rock that were unearthed by the quarry operation and abandoned over a half-century ago. Tons of coral fossils and other aquatic organism fossils are quite common to find at Rockport.
I think that the main reason I liked the park so much was that it almost felt like you were on a different planet. The entire landscape is rocky and tough, but over the years since the quarry closed, trees, grasses, and flowers have sprouted from the terrain. A number of sinkholes have formed as well, most likely due to the way the limestone was harvested from the earth. The sinkholes filled in with water over time and now offer a unique ecosystem of their own.
There are a number of little creeks and marshy areas running through the park as well, one of which I was lucky enough to find a large pudding stone on the banks of. I’m not sure how it managed to be there, but it was completely covered in moss and appeared to have been there for quite some time. I didn’t take many fossils, as we had just come back from Onaway State Park on Black Lake, but Kira came home with a few big Hexagonaria coral fossils, which are super cool. Whether you’re searching for a unique hike, fancy a jump in the crystal clear waters of Lake Huron, or want to dig around for some fossils, Rockport is the place for you!
