Val-Du Lakes has storied history

By Caleb Jackson The Oceana Echo Community Correspondent

At the end of June, scarcely two months ago now, the Electric Forest Festival kicked off in Rothbury at the Double JJ Resort. This four-daylong music festival, which is a wildly successful event every year, brought roughly 50,000 people to our cozy little corner of Michigan. Not only that, but it brought them to a village with a population of less than 500. In fact, the number of concertgoers dwarfed the population of Oceana County itself, which is said to only range in the 26,000s. It is surprising to think that such an event could be successful here and that it could have such a strong pull across the whole nation. However, it is not unique, and the Double JJ Resort wasn’t exactly going out on a limb when they decided to start hosting this festival. The truth is, things of this sort have happened here before at Val-Du Lakes.

The first person to see the potential that Val-Du Lakes held as a place for fun and relaxation was a man named Moses Davis.

“Perched on the brow of a wooded eminence and commanding a view of a most enchanting valley, nestled in which is beautiful Silver Lake, and with a background of the most wonderful shifting sand dunes in the world and, in the greater distance, the wide expanses of Lake Michigan, is the most charming farm resort in all this famous resort region!”

The above quote is taken from an ad for the resort that Moses would start on the property. This same ad even tells us where the name of the Val-Du Lakes comes from, being a “combination of the words valleys, dunes, and lakes.” Davis and his wife, Beulah Thompson, were both retired schoolteachers. They bought the 100-acre farm back in the 1930s and decided to set up their resort. They farmed cherries, apples, pears, vegetables and livestock, all of which went to feed their guests, and they offered services such as “boating, fishing, swimming, horseback riding, hay rack rides, barn dances... the list goes on. Being African American themselves, the Davis’ resort was primarily a place for other African Americans to come and unwind. Eventually, it was the Davis’ daughter Lila who brought an end to this era when she sold the property “for a dream — a place to play ball, listen to music, relax, and enjoy.” And quite the dream it ended up being.

Blue Öyster Cult, Metallica, Megadeth, Doc Watson, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Willie Nelson, The Beach Boys—these are just some of the names that graced the stage at Val-Du Lakes. Initially, three men purchased the property in the early 1980s: Merle Johnson, Craig Cihak and Bob Foster. Their intentions were to turn it into a strip for dune buggies and drag racing. But then there was a change of ownership. Bob Foster was replaced by Paul Erickson, and Tom Greiner was brought on board. What followed was an era of rock ‘n’ roll the likes of which West Michigan hasn’t seen since. Thousands of people flooded the hills of Val-Du Lakes to see some of the biggest names the nation had to offer. Guns N’ Roses opened for Aerosmith in 1988; Bon Jovi played the summer of the following year; Meat Loaf and Mötley Crüe both played in 1990, only nine days apart. But it wasn’t all just rock stars and mosh pits. The Hilltop Hoedown event in 1985 brought some of the biggest names in bluegrass together for some more family-friendly music. Some of the acts included The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils and Doc and Merle Watson. The flyer for the event even boasted, “Remember, Rain or Shine, Bring Yer Lawn Chair!”

Aside from the outdoor amphitheater, some of the other renovations made to the property in the early 1980s included the addition of three softball diamonds and the conversion of the 100-year-old barn into a restaurant. This, coupled with one of the largest outdoor liquor licenses in the state of Michigan at the time, made Val-Du Lakes a very popular vacation destination. The softball tournaments were another very popular event held on the property. The 1985 tournament schedule ran from May 18 to Sept. 29 and involved all three softball fields.

All the while, of course, the Silver Lake Sand Dunes were only two miles away. Two of Oceana’s greatest tourist destinations were nestled right next to each other in Mears.

These days, the Val-Du Lakes are in a new era, but they carry the same spirit of fun and relaxation forward.

After closing sometime in the late 90s, the property was purchased by Brian and Mary Lowing, who revitalized and reopened it over a decade later. To quote from their website, valdulakes. com, “Val-Du Lakes Resort continues to embrace its rich past as both a scenic country resort and West Michigan’s entertainment hotspot,” and a big part of the charm of the Val-Du Lakes of the present day is the campground. “Guests at the Val-Du Lakes Campground still enjoy the beauty of the natural grounds and return year after year to make memories at the best and most relaxed campground in Silver Lake,” the website boasts. Not only that, but the Lowings have also restored the Val-Du Manor, Moses Davis’ home, which was originally built in 1888. “The manor house is available to rent throughout the season and features the original hardwood floors and authentic 1920s furnishings, reflecting its past as a turn-of-the century boarding house.” If camping isn’t your thing, the manor includes “a full kitchen with appliances, a formal dining room, a living room, a front porch/sunroom, a large deck with a hot tub, and a spacious one acre yard with a gazebo and fire pit.” Of course, good food and music are quintessential to the Val-Du Lakes, and both can still be enjoyed at Val-Du Lakes Bar and Grill, which is in close proximity to the manor! Pictures of the restored manor and the menu for the bar and grill can both be found on the previously mentioned website.