Campground Review: Wakefield Park Wakefield, MI

I crossed over into Michigan's Upper Peninsula on US 2 aiming for the small town of Wakefield which US 2 passes through.  Just off of that highway on M-28 is a small six site grassy park that allows overnight camping for a requested donation.  The park is right up against Sunday Lake and the campsites, which feature electric hookups and water, are within feet of the lake.  When I got to the park there was only one site open but it turned out to be the best one in my opinion and I jumped on it.

The Mini's site at Wakefield Park.

My site was on a little peninsula that juts out into the lake and, more importantly, was separated from the other closely packed sites by 40 or 50 yards so it had more privacy.  You do have to drive over some grass that can get soggy if it rains (which it was) but to me it was worth it.

If you look through the trees on the left you'll see my closest neighbor.

Here's Wakefield Park's data sheet:

Hookups:                                             20-30-50 amp, water                                                  

Fire ring:                                              No fires allowed                                                        

Water Access:                                     Yes                                                     

Fresh Water:                                        Yes                                         

Trash Service:                                      Yes                                         

Toilets:                                                Yes (flush)                                         

Showers:                                             Yes                                                     

Dump station:                                      No                              

WiFi:                                                   No                              

Level sites:                                          Yes                                         

Laundry:                                              Yes                                                     

Store:                                                   No (Mini-mart within walking distance)                   

Pool:                                                    No                                                      

Shade:                                                 Yes                                                     

Verizon reception:                                 4G, 2 bars                                           

Internet reception:                                 2 bars                          

Cost:                                                   Free (Donation requested)

When I looked on Yelp for restaurants in Wakefield a diner named Ma's Diner came up within walking distance of the campground so I walked to breakfast the next morning and wound up stuffed!

The Pa's omelet.  Stuffed with hash browns, sausage and bacon!

I almost got 2/3's of the way through the Pa's omelet (at Ma's!) when my brain over-ruled my stomach (or maybe the other way around?) and I stopped.  I'd never had an omelet that had all the rest of the breakfast stuffed inside it.  It was great but way too much for one person, splitting it between two people would be the way to go, but I highly recommend Ma's Diner for breakfast!

Sunday Lake isn't that large a lake and the town has constructed a walking trail that allows you to walk all the way around it, which I did.

A section of boardwalk Wakefield has constructed around Sunday Lake.

Sunday Lake as seen from the boardwalk.

I was enjoying my great campsite on Sunday Lake so much I decided to stay there a few extra days but July 1st, after two days, a city employee knocked on the Mini's door and politely told me I had to move, in fact all the campers had to vacate the park because they were going to start setting up for the annual fireworks display scheduled for the 3rd.  Bummer!  Another employee told me they use my peninsula site to shoot the fireworks off over the lake so I packed up, left a $10 donation in the donation box feeling grateful for the two days I DID get and continued east across the U.P.

If you are traveling along US 2 in the far western part of the U.P. check out Wakefield Park on the southern side of Sunday Lake.  Don't confuse it with the park on the north side though, that park charges normal fees for it's camping.

Thanks for reading!