Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
IUCN category III (natural monument or feature)
The Sleeping Bear Dune
Location	Leelanau County & Benzie County, Michigan, USA
Nearest city	Traverse City, Michigan
Coordinates	44°54′47″N 86°01′13″W
Area	71,187 acres (288.08 km2)
Established	October 21, 1970
Visitors	1,222,313 (in 2005)
Governing body	National Park Service

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a United States National Lakeshore located along the northwest coast of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan in Leelanau County and Benzie County. The park covers a 35-mile (60-km) stretch of Lake Michigan's eastern coastline, as well as North and South Manitou Islands. This northern Michigan park was established primarily because of its outstanding natural features, including forests, beaches, dune formations, and ancient glacial phenomena. The Lakeshore also contains many cultural features including the 1871 South Manitou Island Lighthouse, three former Life-Saving Service/Coast Guard Stations and an extensive rural historic farm district.

History

Aerial view of Sleeping Bear Dunes

The park was authorized on October 21, 1970. The park's creation was highly controversial because it involved the transfer of private property to public. The Federal government's stance at the time was that the Great Lakes were the "third coast" and had to be preserved much like Cape Hatteras or Big Sur, which are National Seashores. The residents living in what is now Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore believed they were stewards of the land and did not want it to be overrun by tourists. The Government eventually won out in part by supporting the local schools to offset the lost property tax revenue and by adding North Manitou Island to be included in the park.

The park is named after a Chippewa legend of the sleeping bear. According to the legend, an enormous forest fire on the western shore of Lake Michigan drove a mother bear and her two cubs into the lake for shelter, determined to reach the opposite shore. After many miles of swimming, the two cubs lagged behind. When the mother bear reached the shore, she waited on the top of a high bluff. The exhausted cubs drowned in the lake, but the mother bear stayed and waited in hopes that her cubs would finally appear. Impressed by the mother bear's determination and faith, the Great Spirit created two islands (North and South Manitou Island) to commemorate the cubs, and the winds buried the sleeping bear under the sands of the dunes where she waits to this day. The "bear" was a small tree-covered knoll at the top edge of the bluff that, from the water, had the appearance of a sleeping bear. Wind and erosion have caused the "bear" to be greatly reduced in size over the years. Today only a small remnant remains.

In 2011, the park was named by ABC's Good Morning America as the "Most Beautiful Place in America".

Recreational opportunities

Trails

Sleeping Bear Dunes and South Manitou Island from Empire Bluff

Old Indian Trail - Two mostly flat loops of about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) each that takes hikers/skiers to the shore of Lake Michigan;

Platte Plains - 14.7 miles (23.7 km) of trails looping over a mostly flat plain.

Empire Bluff - A short trail of only 1.5 miles (2.4 km) round trip, but a very hilly trip that winds through an old beech-maple forest to the lookout atop of Empire Bluff;

Windy Moraine- A 1.5-mile (2.4 km) trail with one big hill that has a good view of Glen Lake;

Shauger Hill- A 2.4-mile (3.9 km) loop with some very steep hills and crosses the Scenic Drive a couple of times;

Cottonwood (not maintained for skiing);

Base of a dune

The Dunes (not maintained for skiing);

Duneside Accessible (not maintained for skiing);

The Dunes (Sleeping Bear Point) (not maintained for skiing);

Alligator Hill-Two long and steep hills that end in a beautiful 180 degree view of the surrounding forests and Lake Michigan

Bay View;

Pyramid Point (not maintained for skiing);

Good Harbor Bay;

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

Main article: Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive is a 7.5-mile (12.1 km) loop that overlooks some of the Lakeshore's most unique scenery. There is an observation point that is atop of a 450-foot (140 m) bluff and looks straight down at Lake Michigan and north one mile (1.6 km) to the Sleeping Bear Dune. The Sleeping Bear Dune and The Manitou Islands can be seen from the overlooks at stops #3,9, and 10. At stop #4, one can hike a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) loop through the perched dunes called the Cottonwood Trail. In mid-November, the drive is close to vehicular traffic and is used as a cross-country ski trail.

Historic sites

Looking south from Sleeping Bear Dunes toward Empire Bluffs and the southern portion of the National Lakeshore in Benzie County

Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station Maritime Museum

Out from Sleeping Bear Point, the shipping lanes turn towards the east and the Straits of Mackinac. In the early days of shipping on the lakes, any change in direction had the potential for accidents. And here, it was compounded by a shoreline that continues northward along the shipping routes, and two islands set several miles out from the shore, South Manitou Island and North Manitou Island In rough weather, Manitou passage offered safety. The Life-Saving Service established a station out on the point in 1871 and operated until 1915. At that time, Service became the root of a new organization, the U.S. Coast Guard. The original station is now a museum, along with the Boathouse, Surfboats, and Beach Apparatus (Breeches Buoy).

Glen Haven Village

Main article: Glen Haven, Michigan

Glen Haven existed as a company town from 1865-1931. Originally, a dock for Glen Arbor (1855-date), the site soon became a fuel supply point for ships traveling up and down the lake. Here Charles McCarty decided to open his own business and built a dock to supply the ships with wood. In 1863, McCarty built the Sleeping Bear House. It was expanded a few years later to accommodate travelers. In 1928, it was remodeled into the Inn for summer vacationers. The General Store was established to supply the workers. Like most company towns, the workers were paid in company coupons, redeemable only at the company store. The Blacksmith Shop is where tools were repaired. In 1878, David Henry Day arrived in the community. By this time, coal from the Appalachian coal fields was replacing wood on the steamships. Day was looking for another future to this small community.

Historic D.H. Day Farm

Port Oneida Historic Farm District

Main article: Port Oneida Rural Historic District

In 1860, Port Oneida had a population of 87 people. Thomas Kelderhouse had built a dock to sell wood to the passing steamships. He was also able to sell fresh produce and maple sugar in season. A local story says that the name comes from the first ship to stop, the S.S. Oneida of New York State. The area covers 3,000 acres (12 km²) and includes 16 historic farms. The farming community was gradually abandoned due to hard farming conditions and declining timber sales.

Climate

Climate data for Traverse City, Michigan
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °F	29	29	38	52	64	75	81	78	71	60	44	33	55
Average low °F	15	13	21	32	41	52	59	58	51	41	31	21	36
Rainfall inches	1.9	1.5	1.8	2.3	2.8	2.5	2.8	2.7	3	2.8	2.7	1.8	28.6
Snowfall inches	19.9	16.2	12.1	3	0.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.7	8.8	16.5	77.5
Average high °C	−2	−2	3	11	18	24	27	26	22	16	7	1	{{{year high C}}}
Average low °C	−9	−11	−6	0	5	11	15	14	11	5	−1	−6	{{{year low C}}}
Rainfall mm	48	38	46	58	71	64	71	69	76	71	69	46	726
Snowfall cm	50.5	41.1	30.7	8	0.8	0	0	0	0	1.8	22.4	41.9	196.9
Source:

Flora and fauna

Cougars or Eastern cougars have been observed in the Lakeshore, and the National Park Service advises respect, caution and notification to rangers if one is encountered.

See also

• Sand Dune
• National Park Service
• Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive
• Port Oneida Rural Historic District
• List of areas in the National Park System of the United States
• Glen Haven, Michigan

External links

The lakeshore during winter

• National Park Service: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
• Traverse City Convention and Visitors Bureau
• North Manitou Island
• North Manitou Island
• Sleeping Bear Dunes Visitors Bureau
• The Sleeping Bear Organization
• Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore travel guide from Wikitravel