 |
| Sometimes the pool below the Cave Point County Park sea caves is calm. |
 |
| Cave Point Trail map. Click for larger version. |
The trail runs just under a mile on the beautiful Door Peninsula, the thumb in the mitten that is Wisconsin. A small park, Cave Point is a 19-acre square surrounded by Whitefish Dunes State Park, both of which are free to enter (though you’ll need a state pass to park at the latter).
To reach the trail, from Sturgeon Bay take Wis. Hwy. 42 north. Turn right/east onto Wis. Hwy. 57. Before entering Jacksonport, turn right/south onto N. Cave Point Drive. Next, turn left/east onto Schauer Road. Once in the park, leave your vehicle at the second lot on the right.
Cave Point Trail heads southeast from the lot’s center. After crossing a green, the trail jogs northeast, enters the woods, and comes to the cedar-lined cliff.
Niagara Escarpment
You’re standing atop the Niagara Escarpment, a shelf of dense dolomite that stretches south to Milwaukee then north into Michigan, southward to Ontario and finally to Niagara, New York. The escarpment formed as shells from marine animals that died floated to the bottom of their ancient, tropical sea, piling up and hardening about 415 million years ago.
Locally, the shelf extends about a quarter of a mile offshore just beneath Lake Michigan’s surface. Because of this, the wind-driven waves break in the lake and then speed up as approaching Cave Point. Upon hitting the bluff, lake spray flies some 30 feet into the air, hitting the cedars and clifftop. The impacts are loud, and you’ll feel like you’re at the ocean.
Sea caves sit below your feet. The pounding waves have been carving cavities in the hard limestone since the end of the last ice age. The freezing and thawing cycle have further fractured the holes, speeding up the erosion.
Indeed, winter is a particularly beautiful time at the park as icicles hang from the many outcroppings.
As the caverns are in the cliffside and largely underwater, they can’t be entered from land. Kayakers and scuba divers can get close to them, however, and a number of private businesses offer excursions to the caves or rent gear so you can do your own adventure.
Beach and immense trees
The trail continues northeast down to a small beach. Several fascinating rock outcroppings and formations can be seen along the way. The trees here also are fantastic, with the larger of them more than a century old.
Retrace your steps back up the cliff but rather than take the trail to parking lot, follow it southwest to the top of the rocky headland rising 10 to 20 feet above Lake Michigan.
After taking in the great view from the headlands, follow the trail back into the woods. It quickly reaches the park road; once there, go right/northeast and walk along the road’s shoulder to the parking lot.
Be extremely careful when walking the cliffside – there are no railings, and with the wet surfaces, slipping is easy.
