Easily my favorite site of all sixteen in the park.
Sunset on Saturday night as seen from the calf-deep waters of Lake Michigan.
Waymark’s 35L EVLV is the backpack I take out most often on overnight trips.
Hawk Vittles’ Southwest Lasagna is my favorite meal so far from one of my favorite backpacking meal brands - they make it with actual lasagna noodles!
Looking out eastward toward Varney Point.
Sunrise on Sunday morning.
The approach trail to the site is so long and lush that once I made camp I didn’t see a single passerby hiker the rest of the day.
The rock beach at 12 makes it a lot easier to keep your feet and shoes clean (the most popular site in the park, 16, has a sand beach).
Staying this close to the water means a lot of exposure to wind, but also a lot of access to rocks, so this site is both the cause and solution to your wind problems.
If you camped any closer to the lake you’d probably be swimming in it.
Backpacking into Site 12 at Newport State Park
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I have ridden bike trails that go through the primitive sites in this area, but never stayed there before. It looks beautiful. I’d like to pack my kayak and boat in to one of the sites some day! Happy camping!