Our morning hike began with a beautiful snowfall, as we made our way from Mt. Baldy along the shore to Kintzle Ditch. Narrow enough to jump across, we took running starts and jumped the 10 foot wide portion of the channel. Any wider and we would have landed in the water. We headed toward Central Beach exploring the wintery landscape safely, away from the lake, and the eroding dunes. Our return trip, we walked to the end of Central Beach, then up the small streets to Beverly Avenue, and hiked the road back to take in the views of the woods and wetlands. Some of the older streets still exist where homes once stood atop the dunes. Some local residents told us of a trail that is rarely used, but leads directly to the top of a tall dune near Kintzle Ditch, a stream winding through the dunes. As long as we stay on the trail and don't wander off, we wouldn't harm any of the plantlife or further erode the dunes.
As we approached the top of the dune, the wind suddenly increased to around 30 miles per hour (earlier on the beach there was barely a breeze). Snow could be seen over Lake Michigan, and it was advancing quickly. In a matter of moments, it was snowing at our location, and the winds were relentless. Not dressed for such conditions, we quickly headed back to the road, and made our way to the trail head. On our way back, the snow turned to rain, but at least on this side of the dunes, we were protected from the strong winds.
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