Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Welcome to the official page for Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Welcome to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore page.

www.nps.gov/slbe

Operating hours and seasons : https://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/hours.htm We hope this will become a place where fans feel comfortable sharing information and experiences, about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, with one another. While this is an open forum, it is also a family friendly one, so please keep your comments and wall posts clean. Please be considerate of other fan's opinions. In addition to keeping it family friendly, we ask that you follow our posting guidelines here. If you do not comply, your message will be removed. We do not allow graphic, obscene, explicit or racial comments or submissions, nor do we allow comments that are abusive, hateful or intended to defame anyone or any organization. We do not allow solicitations or advertisements. This includes promotion or endorsement of any financial, commercial or non-governmental agency. Similarly, we do not allow attempts to defame or defraud any financial, commercial or non-governmental agency. We do not allow comments that suggest or encourage illegal activity. You participate at your own risk, taking personal responsibility for your comments, your username and any information provided. Posting of external links on this site that are intended as advertising (or to drive traffic to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore National Park), or do not contribute to dialog and discussions about Sleeping Bear Dunes may be deleted. External links do not constitute official endorsement on behalf of the U.S. National Park Service or the U.S. Department of Interior. For official information about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, please visit http://www.nps.gov/slbe

October 6, 2026, Autumn Leaf Peeping Update:Maple and cottonwood trees are showing the first colors of the season, with ...
10/06/2026

October 6, 2026, Autumn Leaf Peeping Update:

Maple and cottonwood trees are showing the first colors of the season, with oranges and reds dotting the landscape. Most other tree species are still holding their late-summer greens. This Oct. 5 picture from the North Bar Overlook shows a mostly green expanse with a few pops of color.

Peak color is on the way.

NPS Photo/E. Sunblade

Autumn Leaf Peeping Update:Leaves are still mostly green. Peak season for fall colors will likely be mid-October.Great s...
09/29/2026

Autumn Leaf Peeping Update:

Leaves are still mostly green. Peak season for fall colors will likely be mid-October.

Great spots to experience the season are:

North Bar Lake Overlook - stop #11 on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive
The Meadow Loop on the Pyramid Point Trail
The Carsten and Elizabeth Burfiend Farm in Port Oneida

NPS Photos/ N. Green

Here you come again, looking like you want to get outside. Do we ever cross your mind? Come visit Sleeping Bear Dunes Na...
09/25/2026

Here you come again, looking like you want to get outside. Do we ever cross your mind? Come visit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore! Whether you’re a Backwoods Barbie, a Jolene, or a Randy, take a break from your 9 to 5 and spend some time out here in nature.

While the summer season is winding down, there’s still lot to discover and enjoy in the park. The trees will soon start to put on their coats of many colors, and the early morning breeze will start to get a little cooler. Whether you love to kayak down your river of happiness or hike by the wildflowers, there are still plenty of ways to explore the park. There’s nothing like seeing the light of a clear blue morning on the top of a dune and catching a glimpse of North and South Manitou islands in the stream.

Love is like a butterfly, and we love greeting visitors whether you fly in from your Tennessee mountain home or simply walk over from two doors down. What else can we say? Sleeping Bear Dunes is the star of the show, pure and simple. For many people this place feels like home even if your just travelin’ thru and often makes you think “I will always love you”.

"Fall" into a ranger program this week as the sun sets on summer.Paint with a RangerTuesday, Sept. 22, 10:30 amMaritime ...
09/21/2026

"Fall" into a ranger program this week as the sun sets on summer.

Paint with a Ranger
Tuesday, Sept. 22, 10:30 am
Maritime Museum Grounds

Fall Bird Migration Walk
Thursday, Sept. 24, 8:30 am
Otter Creek Loop Trailhead

Rolling Through Time - Bike Program
Thursday, Sept. 24, 1 pm
Meet at the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail parking lot on Port Oneida Road

National Public Lands Day Celebration
Saturday, Sept. 26, 10 am - 1 pm
Dune Climb

Dune Plateau Geology Hike
Saturday, Sept. 26, 10 am
Cottonwood Trail

Full details on the website and app calendar.
https://go.nps.gov/slbecalendar

NPS Photo/E. Sunblade

Why do you think this tiny spring peeper was hanging out on a park office doorhandle?Sleeping Bear Dunes is home to at l...
09/05/2026

Why do you think this tiny spring peeper was hanging out on a park office doorhandle?

Sleeping Bear Dunes is home to at least 5 species of frogs and toads. The unique ridge and swale ecosystem found throughout the park, especially in the Platte District, is prime amphibian habitat.

Sleeping Bear Dunes is one of seven parks in the Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring Network where yearly amphibian sound recordings are collected. The resulting data help determine species and population trends.

Read more about this research on the Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring amphibians page, https://www.nps.gov/im/glkn/amphibians.htm.

NPS Photo/E. Sunblade

Do you like to explore? Or learn new things?Or protect natural and historic resources?If so… you would be a GREAT Junior...
08/30/2026

Do you like to explore?
Or learn new things?
Or protect natural and historic resources?
If so… you would be a GREAT Junior Ranger!

Nearly all national park sites have a Junior Ranger program that encourages visitors (young and old) to learn about what makes that park unique.

You can even earn a special badge! Here at Sleeping Bear Dunes, you can pick up
a Junior Ranger book at multiple locations. Visit www.nps.gov/slbe/learn/kidsyouth/junior-ranger.htm to find out more about the program.

On this National Junior Ranger Day, we’d like to thank all the Junior Rangers out there—thanks for your adventurous spirit, your willingness to learn, and your enthusiasm for our national parks!

Are you a Sleeping Bear Dunes Junior Ranger?

NPS Photos

National Park Week Staff SaturdayDid you know that there is more than one type of park ranger?Park rangers have differen...
08/29/2026

National Park Week Staff Saturday

Did you know that there is more than one type of park ranger?

Park rangers have different roles. Some are administrative staff who manage budgets. Others are law enforcement rangers. They work to keep park staff and visitors safe.

We have maintenance rangers and trail rangers who work hard to keep park facilities and trails in shape. Without them, we would be lost!

There are also so many scientists in parks! Scientists at Sleeping Bear Dunes protect rare species. They also work hard to reduce invasive species in the park.

Interpretation rangers share programs and education with the happy faces of the public. Visitor services rangers are there to hand you your shiny new pass!

Park rangers wear so many hats – and that's just naming a few!

NPS Photo

Thankful Thursday: The People Behind the ParkWhat makes a national park special? The people who help make sure everyone ...
08/27/2026

Thankful Thursday: The People Behind the Park

What makes a national park special?
The people who help make sure everyone can enjoy it.

For National Park Week, we’re celebrating our partners. The Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes volunteers help make Sleeping Bear Dunes accessible to more people.

Through the Bear Tracks Accessibility Program, Friends volunteers help visitors explore the park using all-terrain track chairs and a wheelchair-accessible bike. Volunteers join visitors on their adventures, helping them experience trails, forests, dunes, and Lake Michigan that might otherwise be difficult to reach.

These volunteers do more than guide a chair. They help create memories.

They remind us that the outdoors belongs to everyone, and that America’s story is better when everyone has a chance to be part of it.

Thank you to the Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes and all the volunteers who help make that story possible!

Learn more about accessibility and volunteering: https://www.friendsofsleepingbear.org

Photo provided by Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes

Thankful Thursday: The People Behind the ParkNational parks are more than beautiful places. They are places where Americ...
08/27/2026

Thankful Thursday: The People Behind the Park

National parks are more than beautiful places. They are places where America’s stories are preserved and shared, and volunteers help make that work possible.

Today, during National Park Week, we’re saying thank you to the volunteers who give their time, skills, and energy to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

Park partner Sleeping Bear Forever connects volunteers with the park’s history in many ways. Volunteers help care for historic buildings and landscapes, welcome visitors at museums, share stories of life in earlier times, care for historic orchards, and teach traditional skills.

Every hour spent volunteering helps protect the places and stories that make Sleeping Bear Dunes special.

To all volunteers: Thank you for being part of the Sleeping Bear story. We couldn’t do it without you!

Want to be part of the story? Learn more about volunteering with Sleeping Bear Forever: https://phsb.org/volunteer/get-involved/

NPS Photo

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9922 West Front Street
Empire, MI
49630

Telephone

+12313264700

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