The National Park Service (NPS) at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is working with the Leelanau Scenic Heritage Route Committee to begin planning for a 25-mile non-motorized trailway. The route would generally follow M-22 and M-109 through Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore from the northern boundary of the Lakeshore to the Leelanau County line at Manning Road south of Empire, MI. The trailway would connect park visitor sites and facilities, including campgrounds, historic sites, beaches, trailheads, and other points of interest within the National Lakeshore. It would also provide a non-motorized trail connection between the villages of Empire and Glen Arbor.  The trailway would be on public land [either Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) right-of-way or National Lakeshore property], separated from the roadway, where possible, providing a safe, alternative transportation opportunity for park visitors and residents.  

Grant funds will be used to contract with an architectural, design, and engineering firm to conduct a pre-engineering study and environmental assessment to determine the trail route and alignment, design concept, probable cost and range of uses for a multi-purpose trailway. We anticipate that the information provided by this study will be the basis for further transportation grants to construct the trailway. Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes is the fiduciary party requesting and administering grants for the project.  

The project falls under the umbrella of the Leelanau Scenic Heritage Route (LSHR), designated in 2001under the MDOT State Heritage Route Program and coordinated by the Northwest Michigan Council of Governments (NWMCOG). The LSHR Committee who oversees the Heritage Route Management Plan represents twelve (12)municipalities, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, MDOT, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, The Leelanau Conservancy, the Leelanau County Road Commission, and individual citizens.

The LSHR Committee appointed a Trailway Work Group, which includes the NWMCOG, the National Park Service, Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes, MDOT, Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation (TART) Trails, local governments, and citizens. The Work Group has been working together for over a year to complete the initial planning and scoping for the 25 mile trailway. 

The Work Group’s next steps are:

1) To conduct an environmental assessment to identify alternatives and impacts, and select a preferred trailway route and design.

2) To conduct a pre-engineering study to determine engineering, design, and construction costs. 

3) Provide Public Meetings to review the proposed trail alternatives and solicit comments.

After completion and review of the environmental assessment and pre-engineering study, in cooperation with the MDOT and the NPS, the LSHR hopes to apply for Federal Transportation Enhancement funds to design and construct the trailway.  We will work to identify sources of any required match for the Transportation Enhancement Grant.

If you have questions or wish to submit comments about this project, you can e-mail us, or you can mail them to the park at: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, 9922 Front Street, Empire, MI 49630.