• Looking out at the lake

    Sleeping Bear Dunes

    National Lakeshore Michigan

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  • Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive will not open until Memorial Day Weekend

    Changes to visitor service due to Sequestration. Due to mandatory, across-the-board budget cuts, some visitor services in this park have changed. Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive will not open until Memorial Day Weekend and will close after Labor Day. More »

  • Some restrooms and trash cans not available until Memorial Day

    Changes to visitor service due to Sequestration. Other than those at the visitor center and campgrounds, restrooms and trash cans will not be available until Memorial Day Weekend and will close after Labor Day. This includes the Manitou Islands. More »

Good Harbor Bay Trail

Distance

Loop 2.8 miles long.

Terrain

Flat, wet in places

Vegetation

Mostly wooded with a short section of low dunes at the start

Comments

Picnic area and Lake Michigan beach near the trailhead.


Click to download a Good Harbor Trail map in pdf format.
 
Good Harbor Bay Trail Map
Good Harbor Bay Trail Map
NPS Map 2006
 
Good Harbor Bay Beach

Good Harbor Bay Beach accessed from the Good Harbor Bay Trail

Kerry Kelly 2006

The Good Harbor Bay Trail is almost entirely flat with just a few small grades. Near the beginning of the trail, there is a short section of low coastal dunes, where there is access to the beach. Then the trail turns away from Lake Michigan and becomes wooded for the remainder of its length. A portion of the trail passes through a swamp, and a small bridge assists in crossing a couple of wet spots.

 
Good Harbor Bay Trail

Boardwalk on the Good Harbor Bay Trail

Kerry Kelly 2006

The trail lies between Little Traverse Lake and Lake Michigan. This entire strip of land was underwater at the end of the Ice Age and has emerged gradually during post-glacial times. Along this trail, you can see the different plant communities that have developed in zones parallel to the shoreline. Starting from the beach and traveling inland, you pass through an active dune zone, a shrub zone, a pine-oak forest, and the beginnings of a beech-maple forest. Just a few thousand years ago, the forested zones were barren beaches. Plants, through their growth and decay, have built up a topsoil on top of old dunes.
 

Did You Know?

Piping Plover

The Piping Plover is an endangered species that makes its home on the wide open beaches of Lakes Michigan and Superior. Several nesting pairs have made the shores of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore their home. Their nesting areas have been marked so they will not be disturbed.