This week I felt a desire to head further north than my home base of Traverse City to explore some areas that I have heard about but have never visited yet. I looked at the map and Charlevoix immediately spoke to me. I know Charlevoix well and my wife and I are always happy to visit, but all of our trips are almost boating related and centered in the downtown area. Today, I visited Fisherman’s Island State Park, which is located right on Lake Michigan and not too far from downtown Charlevoix. Please show your support for this show by making a donation. Your contribution helps immensely and allows me to continue going into the field to create these natural soundscapes for your listening pleasure. Your contribution goes directly to the support of this podcast and allows me the ability to create ad-free content for you to enjoy without interruption. The park is next to a cement plant, so I have to admit that my expectations were low. The plant looms over the horizon and is visible for miles from the water and I had an uneasy feeling that its presence would dominate the landscape around the park too. Spoiler alert: While you can see the cement plant driving into and for the first mile into the park, it disappears from view and becomes a distant thought after a couple of minutes.The park itself comprises nearly 3000 acres of dunes, rolling hills, hardwood forests and pristine lakeshore. Speaking of lakeshore, Fisherman’s Island State Park has over 6 miles of unspoiled and beautiful Lake Michigan shoreline. On the day I visited, I only saw 3 other people on the beach and at least a mile or more separated us. Traffic was very light as well, making the wind and crashing waves the only sounds.For the soundscape recording, I selected an area of the shoreline with lots of breaks from submerged rocks to take advantage of the blustery weather. Waves crashing almost creates a white noise effect, which I love. As the water cascaded over the sandbar, I placed the microphone far enough back that I could record it. I recorded for 2 hours and had the entire area to myself. On the day I visited, it was very windy and cool. I can’t imagine a place this amazing is always devoid of crowds.Date & Time: | 6/27/2022 | 230PMLocation: | Charlevoix, Michigan USAPark Name: | Fisherman’s Island State ParkConditions: | Cool, Windy, OvercastRecording Device: | Zoom F3 Field RecorderMicrophone: | Audio Technica BP 4025Digital Audio Workstation:  | Adobe AuditionSupport the show