Oval Beach, a hand-cranked ferry, and the big dunes

Saugatuck’s beaches and dunes are the other half of its fame. Oval Beach, on Lake Michigan, has been ranked by Condé Nast Traveler as one of the best beaches in the world — a wide stretch of soft sand backed by tall dunes. To get to it from downtown the fun way, you can ride the Saugatuck chain ferry across the Kalamazoo River; it’s believed to be the last hand-cranked chain ferry in the country, pulled across by an operator turning a wheel. On the far side rises Mount Baldhead, a giant dune with a stairway of more than 300 steps to the top and a big view over the water.

Just north of town, Saugatuck Dunes State Park protects about a thousand acres of towering, forested dunes and a couple of miles of quiet Lake Michigan shoreline, with hiking trails but no road right to the beach — so it stays peaceful. And for a faster thrill, the open-air dune rides will run you up and over the sand hills while a guide tells stories about the area, including the buried town of Singapore.

If you’d like to visit: Oval Beach and the chain ferry are in the city of Saugatuck; Saugatuck Dunes State Park is at 6575 138th Avenue, just north of town, and you can find park details and a Recreation Passport at michigan.gov/dnr.