Grand Haven, MI in early September

[welove2drive]

We are thinking of doing a long weekend trip (3 nights)in September with our DD, DS and his GF, all mid 20's. We have never been to MI and thought Grand Haven sounded interesting. Considering PJ Hoffmaster SP as it is wooded instead of the parking lot campground on the beach. Do people swim that late in the season? Is this campground sheltered from the wind off of the lake? Is the creek within sight of some of the camp sites? Any favorite sites? Any other info or insight you have would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Marcia

[Opie431]

Some years you can go swimming in the fall and some years you cannot. I took my husband one year and while I swam, he stood there and shivered. Children will be more able to stand it than adults.

[Matt_Colie]

Marcia,

PJ is a great place if you want to feel like you are camping and not just parking. I can't recommend a site because we have where we like and that is mostly because our dog seems to like it. Most of the sites have 30 Amp, but look at the diagrams.

Yes, you can swim in the lake - if you choose to. In September the water will probably be warm and the air cool. But, in Michigan we have a saying, "If you don't like the weather, wait five minutes."

Grand Haven is a parking lot on the beach, but you could easily walk or ride up to the musical fountain. In September, they only run it Friday and Saturday nights after dusk.

Matt

[Dick_B]

It's a long ways from your home. How about a trip to Springfield with a stay at Double J campground. Check out the Lincoln Museum, monuments, old capital, New Salem, and route 66 historical `stuff' including corn dogs at Cozy's.

[brirene]

Even though Grand Haven is a "parking lot on the beach", it's still a great place. Situated on a channel, you can walk out on a pier to the lighthouse, or along the channel all the way into town. Great for biking, too. That said, Hoffmaster is a beautiful, wooded cg, as described above. Imo, one can't go wrong either way, depending on what you're looking for.

[valhalla360]

Actually, if the air is warm and the winds haven't churned up cold water from deeper (both questionable), the water can be quite warm in September (relatively speaking).

The problem is temps start swinging up and down in September so it's hard to say what you will get. It could easily be cool fall weather where you won't want to swim.

[is_it_friday_ye]

I would skip Grand Haven since its just a parking lot at the beach. We really like Van Buren State Park in South Haven which is less than an hour south. Hoffmaster State Park is nice also and has trees. Swimming in Lake Michigan in September will be cold.

[aslakson]

Many of the sites are electric only, so fill your tanks on the way in (there is a watering station available).

You may also have to purchase separate vehicle passes for your truck and trailer, and being out of state that might get spendy.

As far as swimable, depends on your tolerance for chill.

al

[ericosmith]

welove2drive wrote:
We are thinking of doing a long weekend trip (3 nights)in September with our DD, DS and his GF, all mid 20's. We have never been to MI and thought Grand Haven sounded interesting. Considering PJ Hoffmaster SP as it is wooded instead of the parking lot campground on the beach. Do people swim that late in the season? Is this campground sheltered from the wind off of the lake? Is the creek within sight of some of the camp sites? Any favorite sites? Any other info or insight you have would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Marcia

It is a very nice campground. They have several loops although they may not all be open during the week. All of them are wooded, either with hardwoods or pine trees. I vaguely recall some might have a view of the creek but it's not much of a creek. I wouldn't base my decision on that. It is sheltered from the wind as the lake is on the other side of the dunes. Miles of beach to hike. As far as water temperature, who knows. Much depends on the wind direction during the time you're there.