Apr 23 2008
Dolph Park – Ann Arbor
As you probably know by now, one of my great joys in life is exploring nature in and around the places where I live. I certainly love Yellowstone and Grand Canyon and Isle Royale. But there is something really great about getting done with work and heading into the beauty of local nature.
So, when I was a student at the University of Michigan, I made it a habit of visiting almost every park of any size in the City of Ann Arbor. The amazing thing is that even after four years of exploration, I was still finding new trails, routes and cool parks. The city parks are just that good.
One of the more popular parks in Ann Arbor is Dolph Park. Dolph is certainly not the most natural park in Ann Arbor’s collection. Two of Ann Arbor’s busiest roads, Wagner and Jackson, border the west and north sections of the park. Several industrial and research facilities lie just to the west of the park. And shopping malls a plenty line the streets not more than a mile away on Jackson.
Still, Dolph has something that no other Ann Arbor park can boast. It has the only two naturally-formed lakes found in the City of Ann Arbor. Over the years, these lakes became the site of a few houses, but mostly, the lakes are in a natural state.
The best way to access these lakes and the 57-acre park is from a lot on Wagner Road. From here, trails lead in three directions to various park locations. Just to the east is Second Sister Lake. This lake has a nice fishing pier and a few spots to launch a canoe.
To the immediate north is a small pond. There is nothing terribly remarkable about it, but it is home to a fair amount of small wildlife. During my recent visit, I ran into a birder who noted the presence of Fox Sparrows. I don’t really know what that means, but it seemed pretty cool at the time.
Farther north, a visitor finds the largest lake, First Sister Lake. The trails lead to an overlook on top of a small hill. A bench makes for a nice resting stop. I was serenaded by Canada geese as I observed the scene.
There really isn’t a great deal of hiking distance in this park. There may be a mile or two of trails. There has been some talk over the years of creating a natural trail to Third Sister Lake in the University of Michigan’s Saginaw Forest just to the west. But this has not yet happened.
Wide shoulders have been constructed on both Wagner and Liberty. And a sidewalk has been constructed along most of Liberty. Both of these make for a reasonably decent pedestrian route to the Saginaw Forest. I have not blogged about Saginaw yet, but it is highly recommended.
Also, be aware that there is a woodland section away from the lakes just to the east of Second Sister Lake. I have not been able to get in there yet, but perhaps it has some better hiking.
Here is the official Ann Arbor map of this park:
Here is the location on Microsoft Virtual Earth:
I actually live in the Lakewood Subdivision and I LOVE this park! I enjoyed the photographes! Cheers!
I went there recently – my first visit – and there were some strange men in the parking lot. They would walk alone on a path and return to their individual vehicles in the parking lot after a couple minutes. Weird!
Kira!
It is my understanding that this park has had problems in the past as a rendezvous point for illicit activities. And I have to say that about ten years ago, while hiking through a lesser-used portion of the park, I saw a pair of women’s undergarments and other clothing items that had been abandoned.
It’s unfortunate, but the park feels just isolated enough and it’s just close enough to a couple of major roads that it’s probably ideal for that sort of thing. It’s crazy, though. The place is not really remote at all.