Sight · Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
A quiet walk among cedars several centuries old.
Overview
Its isolation and proximity to the dunes are thought to have helped it escape logging. A local account places the stand against early-1900s logging activity on the island. Together, those details explain why this small pocket of forest is such an unusual stop.
Parkwolf’s verdictWhy this grove survivedMap
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Sleeping Bear Dunes Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
South Manitou Old-Growth Cedars is a small grove of northern white cedars in the southwest corner of South Manitou Island, also called the Valley of the Giants. The draw is walking among some of the region’s oldest and largest white cedars, with the trees close around you.
Make this the main hike of an island visit. It’s about seven miles round trip, so it takes a real chunk of the day. When ferry access is operating, reach South Manitou from Leland, then continue to the grove on foot.
Boardwalks and benches carry the path through the grove and let you pause close to the trunks. There’s no broad overlook across a valley of trees; the reward is being inside the stand. For a photo, include a stretch of boardwalk beside a trunk so the planks give the tree a sense of scale.
Many of the trees are estimated at 300 to 500 years old and can reach about 100 feet tall. A fallen cedar revealed 528 growth rings. The grove also includes a tree that was once the national champion white cedar.
A beach route past the Francisco Morazan shipwreck is one option for the return, adding another piece of the island’s story to the hike. Check the island route before setting out; current access can change.
Wildlife
27 sightingsPiping PloverMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
70 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
56 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
68 sightingsSandhill CraneMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
58 sightingsPorcupineMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
31 sightingsLoonMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Sleeping Bear Dunes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyFlorence Lake Trail2.5 mi · 1.5 hr · 2.6 mi awayA short village walk to Florence Lake's sandy shore.
ChallengingSouth Manitou West Side Dunes Trail7.4 mi · 4.5 hr · 2.7 mi awayA hard climb ends with Lake Michigan in every direction.
ModerateFrancisco Morazan Shipwreck Trail6 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.7 mi awayLook down from the bluff at a freighter stranded in 1960.ModerateSouth Manitou Old Growth Cedars Trail6.9 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.7 mi awayA boardwalk through ancient cedars after a full island walk.
EasySouth Manitou School House Trail3 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.7 mi awayA three-mile island walk to a one-room schoolhouse from 1899.
EasySouth Manitou Cemetery Trail4.6 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.7 mi awayAn easy island road walk to the main historic cemetery.
EasyOld Cemetery via Beach2 mi · 1 hr · 2.7 mi awayA short shore walk to South Manitou's old dock and cemetery.
EasySouth Manitou Lighthouse Hike0.6 mi · 30 min · 2.7 mi awayA short village walk to a Lake Michigan lighthouse.Sight · 0.5 mi awayFrancisco Morazan Shipwreck OverlookA shore-level look at a freighter wrecked off South Manitou.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayGeorge Conrad Hutzler FarmAn island farm where isolation helped transform American rye.
Campground · 1.8 mi awayWeather Station Campground — South Manitou IslandA quiet island camp with passage views and a real gear haul.Sight · 1.9 mi awaySouth Manitou Island SchoolhouseEight grades fit in one room, and the island gathered there.
Sight · 2 mi awayAugust Beck FarmA farmstead that tells South Manitou’s farming story.
Campground · 2.5 mi awayBay Campground — South Manitou IslandA walk-in island campground close to South Manitou’s dock.
Sight · 2.5 mi awaySouth Manitou Island CemeteryA quiet island walk into the stories behind the gravestones.
Sight · 2.6 mi awaySouth Manitou Lighthouse ComplexThe 117-step climb opens a wide view across the Manitou Passage.Parkwolf’s Sleeping Bear Dunes ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
