Bay View Ridge Loop

Bay View Ridge Loop is a nearly four-mile circuit through wooded bluffs and Port Oneida farm country, with an open ridge above Lake Michigan. It links historic farm fields to the lower trail along the bluff, then climbs back to the High Trail. The short out-and-back to Lookout Point belongs in the outing; it is one of the best views on the route. The current listed distance is 4 miles, while a detailed route description and the mapped corridor work out to about 3.7, so plan for roughly four miles with the lookout included. Allow two to three hours if you stop at the viewpoint and farms. Most of the walk rolls gently; one short climb gains more than 100 feet. Choose this loop for a longer mix of lake views and local history. The separate Farm Loop is an easier 2.4-mile choice; the full Bay View network is much longer.

The main gravel lot is at the north end of South Thoreson Road, about a quarter-mile off M-22. A Sleeping Bear Dunes entrance pass is required, and there is no drinking water at the trailhead. Follow the route north through hardwoods to the first numbered junction, take the grassy spur to Lookout Point, then return to the junction and continue around the loop. Miller Road, Port Oneida Road, and Thoreson Road each cross the route, so watch for traffic at those crossings. Keep dogs on a six-foot leash. Bay View is also a ski trail, and pets are prohibited on it from December 1 through March 31.

The opening climb is long but gentle through hardwood forest. At the first junction, the short spur reaches a grassy hilltop and bench. From Lookout Point, Lake Michigan opens out with Pyramid Point, farm fields, and both North and South Manitou Islands in view. Give yourself a few minutes here, then retrace the spur to the junction rather than trying to connect to a different loop across the ridge. Back on the main route, the tread drops into the woods and follows the edge of an open field; the lake and its surf appear through the trees along the bluff.

The northern half brings you to Miller Road and Miller Barn, then continues along mowed farm lanes toward the Port Oneida School. Barns, farmhouses, field edges, and woods sit close together here, so this feels like a walk through a lived-in landscape rather than a wilderness trail. The one-room schoolhouse and surrounding farms belong to the Port Oneida Rural Historic District, where agriculture shaped the fields visitors still cross. Past the school, the trail meets the wider crushed-stone Heritage Trail. It runs beside open fields and the road, then passes Olsen Farm before crossing Thoreson Road. The farm buildings and changing views make this stretch more interesting than its broad, easy surface first suggests.

After the lower trail skirts a field and wooded bluff, a short, steep ascent gains more than 100 feet to the High Trail. Take your time on this uphill section; it is the clearest effort spike in a mostly moderate walk. The trail then follows the open bluff top, where the lake-facing views return and Sleeping Bear Point and the Manitou Islands frame the distance. It passes near restored Thoreson Farm, dips into woods, and crosses a field on the way back to the trailhead. The route mixes dirt paths, grass, and crushed stone, with several road crossings and one real climb; the payoff is getting both the broad ridge view and the farms in one circuit.