Beyond the Trails: The Unsettling Shadow of Unsolved Attacks at Grand Mere State Park

The fall of 2021 saw two reports of women being attacked at Grand Mere State Park near Stevensville about 20 miles north of the Indiana line.

The case appears to have gone cold with no new reports, or attacks, reported since then.

But a curious posting to Reddit's Creepy Encounters subreddit may be the work of a similar perpetrator.

The Original Incidents: A Look Back at the 2021 Assaults

The original assaults took place in April and September of 2021 and appeared to bear enough resemblance that authorities linked the cases. In the spring attack the assailant was frightened off by the victim's dog. In the later assault the teenaged victim was knocked unconscious.

A Park's Paradox: Grand Mere Seclusion Seconds From the Freeway

.Grand Mere is an intriguing spot as the parking lots are located, without exaggeration, within seconds of driving to Exit 22 on I-94 but feel completely distant from that busy freeway once you've entered the nature trails and sand dunes of the park.

READ MORE: Michigan DNR Has Stern Words for Summer Parkgoers, "Park Right or Get Towed"

The story from the Reddit tread comes from January 2025. The poster was familiar with the state park assaults and was hiking and geocaching in a nearby park (presumably North Lake Park or Lincoln Township Beach).

The January 2025 Encounter: A Disturbing Resemblance

She reported spotting a man in the woods off a side trail watching her:

I got this strange feeling that I needed to get out of there. Being a women in her 20’s, alone in the woods with a strange man watching me was not ideal. I started walking back towards the main trail, my goal was to get some distance between the two of us. He blocked the path, and tried to talk to me. I tried to keep walking, but he blocked the trail making it hard to go around him. The path was surrounded by prickers, mud, etc. The man began to talk to me, he asked me if I was searching for mushrooms, or if I lost something. I explained to him I was geo caching, but needed to get back to my car. The man gave me a creepy smile and continued to block me from continuing to walk to my car.

She was saved by a Facetime phone call at which point the man backed off.

Creepy encounters do happen and a nearly 5 year gap between reported assaults in the Grand Mere area does provide some intrigue and questions.

The police sketch from the 2021 attacks can be seen here.

👇🏼BELOW: The Only Destination For These Special Highways are Michigan State Parks👇🏼

As ever, the best advice is to always be aware of your surroundings and let people know where you're going and when you expect to return.