Come to the Lakeshore for a Picnic in the Park and Junior Ranger Day

Date: June 10, 2016

Come celebrate International Picnic Day at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (National Lakeshore) with a Picnic in the Park. Make it simple or extravagant; bring a bike, or go on a hike. Invite friends and family, and earn a Junior Ranger badge or patch. 

The picnic will take place on your own anytime on Saturday, June 18. Junior Ranger Day activities will take place 1:00-4:00 p.m. Visitors will meet park staff at the Dune Climb parking area for this free event. Families are welcome to come and go, but plan to spend one hour with park rangers to earn a Junior Ranger badge. Snacks will be provided. 

If there is inclement weather, the Junior Ranger Day activities will be moved to the log cabin located at D. H. Day Campground. Please park in Glen Haven and walk along the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail to the log cabin to participate in the event

In celebration of the National Park Service’s (NPS’s) 100th birthday, this year’s Picnic in the Park theme is “Find Your Park.” Visitors will get the chance to learn about the National Lakeshore and the nation’s other NPS sites.  

Both children and adults can participate in programs to earn their Junior Ranger badge, and may also choose to become Centennial Junior Rangers, earning a limited-edition wooden Centennial badge.  

Picnic in the Park and Junior Ranger Day events are free with a park pass. Passes may be purchased at the Phillip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire, Michigan, and cost $15 (per vehicle) for seven days, or $30 for an annual pass.

For a complete listing of park events, visit https://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/calendar.htm.

Visitors are also encouraged to share their adventures at FindYourPark.com and on social media using hashtags #FindYourPark and #sleepingbearnps. For questions or concerns regarding these events, please call 231-326-4700, ext. 5005.