Lauren Coin
 |  Capital News Service

Park trails along Lake Michigan’s shoreline in Michigan and Wisconsin are eroding because of more frequent extreme precipitation events and increased foot traffic from visitors in undesignated recreation areas.

While erosion is a natural process, excessive weathering in shoreline park areas can pose problems for nearby water sources, such as Lake Michigan. Eroded soil may carry unhealthy runoff and pollutants that threaten the lake’s health, said Amanda Schwabe, a climate outreach specialist at the Wisconsin State Climatology Office.

Increased precipitation trends are a key driver of erosion in these areas. According to the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Southeast Wisconsin has gotten about 20% wetter in the fall, winter and spring since 1950.

Schwabe said these shifts, coupled with a warmer atmosphere due to climate change, can lead to more frequent extreme precipitation events, such as thunderstorms and heavy downpours. A warmer atmosphere can retain more moisture and increase normal rainfall.

“When we have heavier rain, that creates more runoff because that soil can’t absorb all of that water as quickly, so you have more erosion happening,” Schwabe said.

Schwabe also said the shortened length of Lake Michigan freeze times plays a role in foot traffic on trails.

As temperatures across the two states increase, Lake Michigan and the surrounding natural areas thaw earlier. That allows a longer window for erosion since the soil is not packed down.

“That means if things are staying warmer in the fall and getting warmer earlier in the spring, more people will probably be out on the trails earlier,” Schwabe said.

Pam Uhrig, the board chair for Friends of Grant Park in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, said she has seen a significant increase in foot traffic from visitors at Grant Park since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, erosion has become more prevalent because many visitors stray from designated trails.

“Vans of young people would pull up, and they would actually exercise down along the ravine,” Uhrig said. “They’d be running, not just on the trail, but on the stone walls, and then they’d head up the slope. Of course, those trails started to become worn down, and then the erosion would be even worse when it rained,” she added.

The misuse of shoreline park trails isn’t unique to Lake Michigan’s western shore.

Tim Novak, the state trails coordinator for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, said the lake’s eastern coastline suffers from similar problems.

“It is becoming such an issue that people either don’t know how to use the trails, or in some cases, they’re being intentionally harmful to trails,” Novak said. “They’re ignoring signage that we have out there already to stay on the trail or be aware of erosion.”

Trail erosion in these parks adds to other adverse impacts on Lake Michigan, such as shoreline erosion from high water levels, said Stacy Hron, the Lake Michigan program coordinator for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Office of Great Waters. She added that these shoreline areas are more vulnerable to erosion because of their sandy soil.

“Those exposed areas pretty much universally experienced higher rates of erosion,” Hron said. These problems extend further than just trails — they have damaged parking lots at Michigan parks as well.

Robert Lukens, the community development director for Muskegon County Parks, said the sandy soil and increased precipitation have steadily eroded the Dune Harbor Park parking lot in Muskegon.

Lukens said the area was a “sand mine” before being turned into a parking lot. This infrastructure, coupled with the parking lot’s sloped design and a buildup of rainwater, has caused the area to erode.

Dune Harbor Park received a $250,000 grant from the Consumers Energy Foundation in 2024 for ecological restoration, and part of that money will go toward a project to combat erosion.

This project is unique, Lukens said, because excess rainwater will be redirected to a rain garden area filled with native vegetation and perennials. These plants will help stabilize the surrounding area.

This is just one of many solutions being implemented to fight erosion in parks along Lake Michigan.

For example, a restoration concept plan was developed in 2024 for Grant Park to address erosion impacts at one of its most frequented ravine areas. The plan, in coordination with Milwaukee County Parks, aims to improve trail surfaces and implement natural and human-made deterrents to off-trail foot traffic.

Increased signage along trails and more communication to visitors about off-trail impacts are among other ways Lake Michigan park agencies are combatting erosion problems.

In the meantime, Novak has simple advice for park visitors:

“Stay on the trail.”

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