Door County 2009 Visitor Guide - (Page 15) T • Newport State Park is Wisconsin’s only formally designated Wilderness Park, with a focus on preserving its natural state. Home to 38 miles of beautiful hiking trails and 17 miles of biking trails that weave through hardwood and evergreen forests as well as a natural beach, Newport also features some of the county’s most secluded camping, with 16 backpack-in sites snuck into the preserve; inland Europe Lake is great for kayaking. Newport State Park 475 County Highway NP Ellison Bay (920) 854-2500 • Rock Island State Park takes some work to get to, but once there visitors find it a special Door County paradise. Reachable only by ferry from Washington Island, the island features the Thordarson Estate, Rock Island Lighthouse, and great hiking. Here you’ll see no cars – not even bikes. Just 10 miles of hiking trails, 5,000 feet of beach, and 40 campsites. The sand beach on the island’s North side has been lauded as one of the last visible remains of old Door County. Rock Island State Park (920) 847-2235 • Located just outside the city of Sturgeon Bay, Pottawatomi State Park boasts a 75-foot observation tower, great fishing, hiking and biking, as well as 123 campsites on its 1,225 acres. Founded in 1928, the park draws over a quarter million visitors each year. Pottawatomi State Park 3740 County PD Sturgeon Bay (920) 746-2890 • The sprawling sand beach at Whitefish Dunes State Park is hailed as one of the best in the Midwest, and the dunes that give the park its name are ecologically unique wonders. Climb to the top of Old Baldy, a 93-foot tall sand dune with a view of Clark Lake to the West and Lake Michigan to the east. If you go, certainly enjoy the beach, but take some time to hike the Yellow Trail and follow the Whitefish Creek spur to the trickling water for a moment of solitude. Whitefish Dunes State Park 3275 Clark Lake Rd Sturgeon Bay Other Door (920) 823-2400 The Ridges Sanctuary (Baileys Harbor) Cave Point County Park (Jacksonport) Door Bluff Headlands (Ellison Bay) Ellison Bluff Park (Ellison Bay) Meridian Park (Jacksonport) Frank E. Murphy Park (Egg Harbor) More Info on Door County Parks at: www.doorcounty.com/outdoor/parks.aspx 15 County Parks: From top: Brochure for Peninsula State Park circa 1950; Image 2: photo of the Peninsula Park tower 1938; Image 3: photo of the Peninsula State Park Golf Course; Image 4: Eagle Bluff Lighthouse http://www.doorcounty.com/outdoor/parks.aspx
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