Beach · Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Stony Lake Michigan shore, with one boulder worth framing.
Overview
Map
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.
Recorded for this area
Alligator Hill: Charcoal Kilns and a Longer Walk“Up ahead is the Alligator Hill trailhead, where a row of concrete charcoal kilns makes a quick history stop.”
Plays on the road 0.1 mi from Sunset Shores Beach in the Parkwolf Sleeping Bear Dunes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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
Sunset Shores Beach is a sandy Lake Michigan beach reached from road level by a long wooden staircase. A rounded boulder and scattered stones give the waterline a rockier edge than a plain strip of sand. It suits a low-key stop when you want time by the lake rather than another dune climb.
The wooden stairs descend to soft sand, so anything you carry down has to come back up the same way. Parking is limited near the access. There is no drinking water or restroom at the beach, and the staircase and loose sand make this a non-step-free approach.
Scattered stones and one prominent rounded boulder make this shore distinct from nearby sandier beaches. Put the boulder and a few shoreline stones in the foreground with Lake Michigan behind them; that shows what is unusual about this beach in one frame.
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
ModerateAlligator Hill Advanced Loop4.6 mi · 2.8 hr · 0.1 mi awayFollow the steep southern loop to Islands Lookout above Lake Michigan.EasyAlligator Hill Easy Loop3 mi · 1.8 hr · 0.1 mi awayA forest climb opens onto Lake Michigan and the islands.ModerateAlligator Hill Intermediate Loop4.7 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.1 mi awayA hilly forest loop to Islands Lookout and Manitou views.
ChallengingDunes Hiking Trail3.5 mi · 3.5 hr · 1.1 mi awayNine sandy hills stand between you and Lake Michigan.
ChallengingSleeping Bear Point Trail2.8 mi · 2 hr · 1.6 mi awayGhost forest, open dunes, and Lake Michigan in one sandy loop.
EasySleeping Bear Point Spur Trail0.7 mi · 36 min · 1.6 mi awayA quick sandy walk ends at the Lake Michigan beach.
ModerateCottonwood Trail1.5 mi · 1 hr · 1.8 mi awayA marked dune loop reaches a bench above Glen Lake.
ModerateWindy Moraine Trail1.5 mi · 1 hr · 2.5 mi awayA short hill loop for a Glen Lake glimpse and forest stories.
Sight · 0.1 mi awayAlligator Hill Charcoal KilnsSawmill scraps once became charcoal here for Michigan campers.
Campground · 0.6 mi awayD.H. Day CampgroundWooded campsites put the beach walk and Heritage Trail close.
Picnic area · 0.6 mi awayLittle Glen Lake Picnic AreaPicnic by Little Glen Lake, with the Dune Climb across the water.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayGlen Haven Blacksmith ShopCatch a live forge demonstration in a shop from the 1860s.
Campground · 1 mi awayD. H. Day Group CampgroundFour tent-only group sites near the Dune Climb.
Store · 1 mi awayGlen Haven General StoreA small shop with a surprisingly big role in company-town life.
Lodging · 1 mi awaySleeping Bear InnSleep in Glen Haven's historic inn, with the beach across the road.
Sight · 1 mi awayGlen Haven Cannery and Boat MuseumFruit cannery, Great Lakes boats, and a cordwood town’s story.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.
