SAUGATUCK, Mich. — For thousands of years, the wind has blown sand from the beach inland to create what we now know as the Saugatuck Dunes.
While it can be difficult to venture up the dunes, they are a fun ride.
The trails along the dunes have many curves and switchbacks and a big elevation change, but the landscape wasn’t always like it is now.
“As we make our way through the dunes, keep in mind that everything there used to be a lake or a pretty dense, flat forest,” said Jon Gannon, dune ride driver for Saugatuck Dune Rides. saying.
What was once flat land is now sandy hills.
The tallest dune rises approximately 280 feet above Lake Michigan.
Mixed in with that dune are what look like some small trees, but they aren’t small trees at all.
“They are the highest branches of really gigantic trees,” Gannon explained. “The sand would build up and the tree would continue to grow along with the dune. Those trees could fall from 100 feet to who knows how low.”
Those were some of the only trees left after that land was heavily deforested decades ago.
“Aspen trees are really not good for lumber,” Gannon said. “Everything here was based on the logging industry.”
The logging industry is the reason why the now lost city of Singapore was once a booming place.
“It was supposed to be the big port city on the west coast of Michigan,” Gannon explained. “It was actually going to rival Chicago and Milwaukee, believe it or not.”
The devastation in its rival city is what allowed Singapore to prosper.
“Supplying lumber to Chicago after the great fire was the source of income for these lumber companies,” Gannon said. “They cut down the trees as quickly as they could, milled the wood and shipped it. Once the trees were gone, the logging companies that were here packed up and left. While that was happening, everyone else packed up and left and the city slowly emptied and then was slowly devoured by the sand dunes.”
Today, it is almost impossible to know if Singapore ever existed.
One of the only things that can still be seen are the skeletal remains of the old docks where the mouth of the Kalamazoo River used to be.
Everything else is under feet of sand.
“What we know is still buried down here is a church and a three-story hotel,” Gannon said. “The roof of the hotel and the church bell tower were exposed until the early 1970s. Now everything is completely buried.”
The stories are endless at Saugatuck Dune Rides. That’s what keeps a cyclist coming back every year.
“You learn something new every time,” said part-time Saugatuck resident Kate Rau. “Every driver has a different vision, so there is always something new. It is also nice to see how the area, the trees and the landscape change over the years.”
If you’re looking for a history lesson in a wild ride, Saugatuck Dune Rides are open seven days a week through the third weekend in October.
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