Ariel View: Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes

Birds Eye View, indeed!  I realized on my return flight that I shouldn't have my pocket camera on during take-off.  I didn't realize that anything with a battery had to be turned completely off.  Well this was before I knew better and was a Delta flight from Traverse City to Minneapolis.

Look at the view!  This can only be part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  I'm sure you remember me writing about this famous national park when it won "America's Most Beautiful Place" in a Good Morning America contest. The beautiful white areas on the shoreline are giant sand dunes (some over 400 feet high) that jut down straight into Lake Michigan.

I love the view from the top of the dunes (above), but seeing it from the air is spectacular too! I just had to show you. 

Empire Bluffs Trail

Are you heading north for the Fall color?  If you are headed to the Leelanau Peninsula, I have one more thing you can do to get out in the fresh air.

When I was visiting my friends in Alabama, we talked about northern Michigan a lot.  Melanie and Jon visit family up here every year and they were surprised that I had never been to the Empire Bluffs Trial.  They said that this view of Lake Michigan is their favorite and that a trip "up north" is not complete with out a morning hike out to the bluff (with coffee and muffins?).  Now that I've seen it, I'm sure that a lot of people feel the same way.

You can hike along the Empire Bluffs Trail and stop along the way at bench near the scenic overlook and take in the view (above) of the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes dropping into Lake Michigan.  I stopped here to preserve my ankle, but my husband ventured on and took these two incredible photos.

He wanted me to show you the boardwalk and bench options at the top of the Empire Bluffs Trail, which is 1.5 miles round trip.  The self-guided tour handout says that the lake to the right is called South Bar Lake and that it was once part of Lake Michigan!  Apparently long shore currents deposited a sand bar that eventually separated the water into two lakes.  I know that rivers change their course, but I had never imagined lakes being created from
a sandbar taking hold.

If you make it to this spot, 400 feet above Lake Michigan, breathe in and feel some camaraderie with everyone that holds this view dear.

Imagining an Escape

Last year we were able to sneak up north for a few days in November.  I absolutely love a cold Fall day on the shores of Lake Michigan.  Look at the colors I captured!  I love the steep drop off and how the sand dune is even with the horizon on the right.  The sand at Sleeping Bear Dunes was the color of wheat and the stormy sky told us to enjoy it quick because rain was coming. 

We went home and built a wood fire in the fireplace, I did some knitting and made a batch of soup.  In the Summertime, the area is jam packed with visitors and this sand dune would be covered with enthusiastic climbers.  But when the cold days of November come, the peninsula feels deserted and the color palette changes completely.

The calendar won't allow a trip up north this month, so I am imagining "being there" with this beautiful photo, just like you are.  Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was voted Good Morning America's Most Beautiful Places this year and now you can see why - it's just as pretty when there is no one for miles.

Sleeping Bear Dunes - America's Most Beautiful Place 2011

My first reaction was, "Shh...let's keep this our little secret.  Part of the beauty of Leelanau County is that it is not crowded."  But something this spectacular is meant to be shared, right?  You've probably heard by now that Good Morning America has named my part of the world (at least in the Summertime) as America's Most Beautiful Place! 

And it is true, Leelanau County, home to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park in northern Michigan is the most wonderful place I have ever been.  It is beautiful, natural, peaceful - all of these adjectives and more.  These photos were taken by me with a point and shoot camera on a typical day at Sleeping Bear Dunes.  It is a natural setting in which Lake Michigan can look as grand as any ocean.  I spend my summers here and it is my favorite place on earth.  

You can watch footage and hear from Chef Mario Batali in the Good Morning America television piece below. 
Sleeping Bear Dunes, Michigan Voted Good Morning America's 'Most Beautiful Place' - ABC News

I took this photo from an overlook that is 450 feet above Lake Michigan (the world's 4th largest fresh water lake).  Visitors are welcome to explore the dune and climb all the way down to the water, if they so choose.  The trick is climbing up 450 feet of sand.  For every few feet you climb up, you invariably slide back half as much.

Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes is estimated to be about two thousand years old.  It is a wonderful destination for nature lovers, tourists and, of course, photographers.  What a sight!

I know, I know.  Now you want to come to Michigan, right?  Good Morning America has confirmed what I have been saying all along.  This is the most beautiful place in America.

Sleeping Bear

I was able to sneak in a trip up north this past weekend.  The weather was quite damp and cold - perfect for plaid scarves and reading by the fire.  To break up the day, we decided to drive to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to see what we could see.  The dunes were deserted (no picnics or school field trips this time of year) and the view was spectacular.  Can you see the color variation in the water?  The darker the color, the deeper the water.  You can even make out a double sand bar running parallel to shore.

I took this photo from an overlook that is 450 feet above Lake Michigan (the world's 4th largest fresh water lake).  Visitors are welcome to explore the dune and climb all the way down to the water, if they so choose.  The trick is climbing up 450 feet of sand.  For every few feet you climb up, you invariably slide back half as much.

Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes is estimated to be about two thousand years old.  It is a wonderful destination for nature lovers, tourists and, of course, photographers.  What a sight!

Aside from the endless view, you know what else I loved about this visit?  The only sound was from the wind.

Sleeping Bear

The legend of Sleeping Bear Dunes follows the story of a mother bear and her two cubs crossing Lake Michigan in the winter when the lake is frozen solid. The story is that the mother bear made it to shore and fell asleep (Sleeping Bear) waiting for her two cubs to arrive. They never made it, but found their resting place just offshore, as the North & South Manitou Islands. This photo was taken at sunset from the Sleeping Bear National Park with South Manitou island in the distance.