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Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Dune Ecology
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Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Leaving the Sand Dunes
Cottonwood Trees

Kerry Kelly 2006

Cottonwood Trees at the edge of the dune area

You are about to leave the dunes and enter the neighboring beech-maple forest.  The dunes cover just a small area because they depend on strong winds off Lake Michigan to exist.  The active dune zone extends for only about a mile from the lake.  Further inland, the wind loses its energy and can no longer build dunes.

 

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Lake Michigan Overlook, Sleeping Bear Dunes

Did You Know?
The sand and gravel bluffs on the Lake Michigan shore in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore are 450 feet above the lake level providing outstanding views and sunsets. On a clear day, you can see South Manitou Island.
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Last Updated: July 11, 2006 at 19:48 MST