Sunset Trail

Sunset Trail meanders 10.2 miles through Door County’s Peninsula State Park. The path traverses a scenic landscape of cedar forests, limestone bluffs, and rocky shoreline. Water views of Green Bay and its secondary bays are seen at various places along the route. The trail passes a nature center, picnic and beach area, two boat landings, and two park campgrounds. Another highlight is historic Eagle Bluff Lighthouse.

The surface of Sunset Trail is composed of crushed limestone and packed dirt. The route includes several hills. At road intersections and a few of these steep grades, the surface changes to paved asphalt. The path is narrow, with trail signs encouraging cyclists to ride single file and travel slowly. Rocks, roots, and other obstacles protrude from the trail’s surface in some places. But overall, trail conditions are good.

Peninsula is a large state park, with many hiking trails and several roads crisscrossing the bike route. The trail is well-marked with signs and maps, helping cyclists identify which way to go at various intersections.

During peak tourist times, the sheer volume of Sunset Trail users can be a challenge. Caution, slow speeds, and good trail etiquette support safety for everyone. A daily or annual state park pass is required to use Sunset Trail. Passes may be obtained from the park headquarters near the trailhead.

Peninsula State Park is one of Wisconsin’s best-outfitted parks. It is situated on 3,776 acres in Door County, including eight miles of Green Bay shoreline. Peninsula is the third largest state park in Wisconsin, and sees one million visitors annually. The communities of Fish Creek and Ephraim are located at the park’s two main entrances. In season, bike rentals are offered in Fish Creek and at the Nicolet Beach camp store.

Humans have lived on the lands of Peninsula State Park for thousands of years. Over 2,000 years ago this was the site of a Native American village. The people of the Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Menominee tribes later lived in this area, until relocation in the mid-1800s. Today the landscape’s natural features are peppered with historic sites and placenames.

Peninsula State Park has many facilities and points of interest. Its 5 campgrounds have 468 family sites. Additionally, there 3 group campsites. Nicolet Bay has a large recreation area with a swimming beach, picnic area, playground, and camp store. Canoes, kayaks, and bicycles may be rented from the camp store. It also carries supplies, souvenirs, groceries, and ice. In summer months, Nicolet Bay hosts food trucks offering different fare.

Founded in 1909, Peninsula State Park was created to offer an affordable recreational place for people whose finances prevented vacationing at summer cottages and resorts. To support this aim, the park originally did not charge admission. The Civilian Conservation Corps helped with park improvements during the Great Depression. More work was done by German prisoners of war during World War II, who were imprisoned at a camp in Fish Creek. Decades later, the Sunset Trail was created in 1982.

Northern Sky Theater, an outdoor amphitheater, is located within Peninsula State Park. A professional group of actors and musicians performs for the public, on summer evenings from mid-June to late August. They feature whimsical, family-friendly musical comedies.

White Cedar Nature Center’s exhibits and programs highlight the area’s wildlife and plants. The nature center is on Bluff Road. Peninsula State Park also includes hiking trails, an 18-hole golf course, and Eagle Tower. Fully accessible, this 60-foot-tall canopy walk is set on top of Eagle Bluff and offers a panoramic view of park lands and Green Bay.

Peninsula State Park has picnic areas at Fish Creek (near the park headquarters), Nelson Point, Nicolet Beach and Pines Area, Eagle Terrace, Weborg Point and Welcker’s Point. All areas have picnic tables, charcoal grills and vault toilets. Water and flush toilets are available at Nicolet Beach and Weborg Point in season (typically mid-May to mid-October). Garbage or recycling containers are not provided, and visitors must carry out their trash.

Another park attraction is Eagle Bluff Lighthouse. Set against a backdrop of Green Bay islands, the 1868 lighthouse offers a glimpse of the area’s maritime history. It still guides ships through a narrow channel between the mainland and Strawberry and Chamber Islands. The lighthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Door County Historical Society conducts tours there mid-May through mid-October, for a fee.

For cyclists using the Sunset Trail, the Fish Creek Lot serves as a trailhead. It is best found using the park entrance from Fish Creek. Located on Shore Road, the parking lot is found 400 feet past the park headquarters. No facilities are located in the parking lot, but the headquarters building has restrooms, drinking water, and a bicycle self-service repair station. The start of the Sunset Trail is clearly marked on the south side of Fish Creek Lot.

The trail heads south through a hardwood and white cedar forest. After 0.2 mile, the path crosses Shore Road near the park headquarters. It turns north and runs through a beautiful woods for the next half mile. Then for the following 0.2 mile, the trail passes through low sedge meadows. The Thorp-Claflin Pioneer Cemetery is nearby. This is the final resting place of more than a dozen people including Increase Claflin, who came to Door County in 1834.

After 0.2 miles through sedge meadows, the trail arrives at Green Bay. Here a marker describes the natural characteristics of the shoreline and sedge meadows there. It also tells of Increase and Mary Ann Claflin coming to live at Weborg Point in 1842. Shore Road travels by the trail in this section, and roadside parking is available. This is a good place to view Nelson’s Bay, situated between Weborg Point to the south and Nelson’s Point to the north.

The trail travels north next to Shore Road and by Nelson’s Bay for another 0.2 mile. A spur trail at Nelson’s Point goes left (west) to a parking lot. The point is named for Even Nelson, who settled in the area in the 1850s along with Peter Weborg and 35 Scandinavian families. After the point, Sunset Trail moves away from the road and re-enters the dense forest.

A short distance past the spur trail, the path crosses Mengelberg Lane and  continues north. Mengelberg Lane heads off to Blossomburg Cemetery, established in 1904. The half mile of trail between Mengelberg Lane and Skyline Road continues through scenic forest, crossing several hiking trails. This section involves an ascent of over 40 feet in elevation before arriving at the junction of Middle Road and Skyline Road.

At the path’s junction with Skyline and Middle Roads, the Sunset Trail route divides. Trail-goers may cross Skyline Road to stay on the path, or follow Middle Road to the right (east). The next 6 miles of the Sunset Trail essentially form an oval, with this junction serving as its connecting point. The road route ascends, traveling 2 miles on Middle and Hemlock Roads before resuming on a path.

Trail-goers wanting to stay on the main path rather than ascend Middle Road should continue on the path across Skyline Road. A caution sign there informs cyclists of the impending curvy, downhill ride. The trail descends the bluff about 50 feet, and travels on a fairly level gradient. It journeys along the middle of a 200-foot tall dolomite limestone bluff. Shore Road runs below, while Skyline Road runs along the top of the ridge.

Sheer white stone cliffs are visible from the trail in this section. Above is Sven’s Bluff Overlook, named for retired sailor Sven Anondsen who once lived nearby. This limestone bluff is part of the Niagara Escarpment. This massive regional prominence is a huge limestone ridge. It runs north from Lake Winnebago through Door County to Ontario, Canada. It ends at Niagara Falls in New York. The escarpment in Peninsula State Park is seen in it jagged limestone cliffs.

Sunset Trail travels along the white limestone cliffs of Sven’s Bluff for over a mile. Less than a mile after the junction with Skyline Road, Sunset Trail arrives at another intersection. Park maps are especially helpful here.

This is Sunset Trail’s junction with Hidden Bluff Trail. The later path is a 0.6-mile long trail that bisects the oval formed by Sunset Trail. Hidden Bluff Trail travels east along the cliff before reconnecting with Sunset Trail. The main route following Sunset Trail turns left (north), descends 30 feet, and crosses Shore Road. Hidden Bluff Trail continues straight in an eastwardly direction.

Remaining on Sunset Trail, the route crosses Shore Road and journeys a half mile to Tennison Bay Kayak Launch. Along the way, it travels along the shoreline and through a cedar forest. This is a picturesque section. Park benches encourage trail-goers to enjoy the stunning panoramic view. The trail then arrives at the boat kayak landing, revealing an expansive view of the bay and outlying islands. Nearby is Tennison Bay Campground.

Sunset Trail continues north another half mile to Eagle Bluff Lighthouse. Before arriving there, it traverses Shore Road again. Near Eagle Bluff Lighthouse, a spur trail to the left (east) leads off to the site. The lighthouse sits 75 feet up on Eagle Bluff. It was built in 1868 to guide ships through the channel off Chambers Island, and staffed until 1926. A marker conveys the lighthouse’s history, and in summer the Door County Historical Society offers tours of the lighthouse keeper’s quarters. An amazing view of Green Bay can be seen here.

From the lighthouse, Sunset Trail continues north and then arcs south, making a one mile semicircle around Welcker’s Point. Named after Dr. Hermann and Mrs. Henrietta Welcker of Milwaukee, Welcker’s Point was the site of a health resort they opened there in 1894. This section of the trail also passes through a delightful forest.

Before arriving at Shore Road again, a spur heads off the right (north). This path leads to nearby Welcker’s Point Campground. Sunset Trail crosses Shore Road and follows the driveway down a small hill to Nicolet Bay Boat Launch. The launch site offers a spectacular view of Nicolet Bay and Horseshoe Island.

Sunset Trail next goes south along the shoreline for 0.3 mile to Nicolet Beach. This recreation area on Nicolet Bay offers many amenities. It has drinking water, restrooms, a swimming beach, picnic areas and pavilions, playground, and athletic space. The camp store provides a variety of supplies, souvenirs, groceries, and ice. Canoes, kayaks, and bicycles may be rented there. In the summer, food trucks sell food and beverages.

This is an area rich in history: humans have lived here for thousands of years. Nicolet Bay is the site of a Native American village dating back to 500 B.C. Archeology done at Nicolet Bay indicates that the people living here were of the Woodland and Oneota cultures. Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Menominee tribal members later lived on the peninsula and its islands through the mid-1800s. After the Indian Removal Act of 1830, the U.S. government made treaties with the tribes, and they were relocated out of Door County.

Sunset Trail passes through Nicolet Beach southwardly. It crosses Shore Road and travels over a half mile uphill. The elevation ascends 50 feet to the junction with Hidden Bluff Trail. In this section, the trail passes Northern Sky Amphitheater and parking lot, campground restrooms, and an outdoor athletic course. It also journeys through a pleasant cedar forest.

Trail-goers have a choice of routes at the junction of Sunset Trail and Hidden Bluff Trail. Trail signs and maps are helpful here in discerning the course.  Sunset Trail continues straight to the south 450 feet to Hemlock Rock. This route travels on Hemlock and Middle Roads and reconnects to Sunset Point after 2 miles. This route is hilly, and cyclists can expect a 150 foot climb up Sven’s Bluff.

Turning right (west) onto Hidden Bluff Trail offers a cyclists a more level route. In the 0.6-miles along the edge of the bluff, the path travels by White Cedar Nature Center. A spur trail to the right (north) leads to the nature center, visible from the path.

At Hidden Bluff Trail’s intersection with Sunset Trail, the main route turns left (south) and returns to the trailhead. There is an incline to ascend by Skyline Road, where the road section of Sunset Trail reconnects. From Hidden Bluff Trail, it is 2.5 miles south back on Sunset Trail to the Fish Creek Lot and trailhead.

Sunset Trail at Peninsula State Park offers an experience for the senses. In warmer months, the fragrant smells of cedar forests are evident. White limestone cliffs gleam in sunlight. The sparkling waters of Green Bay are always dramatic, with sailboats often spotted in the blue waters. Attentive cyclists also may detect quiet wildlife and fascinating flora along the trail.

^{Map of trailheads and addresses along this section of the trail.}

Beyond Peninsula State Park, there is no shortage of places to visit in the nearby communities of Fish Creek and Ephraim. Egg Harbor, Sister Bay, Ellison Bay, and other communities offer an abundance of attractions and places to stay. Most places catering to tourists are open May through October, as weekends in summer and early autumn bring throngs of tourists. Late fall, winter and spring are much quieter, especially during the week.

Trail last ridden and documented in October, 2024.