Shifting sands close scenic Sleeping Bear overlook. What’s changed at the park

Visitors to Sleeping Bears Dunes National Lakeshore won’t be able to take in the views from a popular platform along Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive this summer after winter winds undercut the site.

The National Park Service on May 22 said the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive Lake Michigan Overlook has been removed because the shifting dunes had undercut its supports and left them hanging in mid-air.

“Over the winter, the dune severed ties with the wooden viewing platform,” the park service said in a Facebook post. “Strong winds undercut the sand at the base of the platform and the western pilings no longer touched solid ground. This loss of structural integrity was an imminent safety concern. The platform has been removed.”

The park service said that when built the “structure was a considerable distance from the edge of the dune face. But these dunes are an everchanging dynamic system that is moving east. The dune has now moved further east than the platform location.”

While the platform is gone, the park service said “the awe-inspiring views remain the same,” and noted the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive is now open for the summer.

What is Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore?

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a popular tourist destination and one of two national lakeshores in Michigan, the other is Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in the UP.

Where is Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore?

The lakeshore lies along 35 miles of Lake Michigan’s eastern shoreline in west Michigan northwest of Traverse City. Nearby are the villages of Glen Arbor and Empire. The lakeshore is about 39 miles from Traverse City. M-22 runs north and south along the lakeshore.

What is Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive?

Pierce Stocking was a lumberman. He used to walk the bluffs above Lake Michigan, awed by the views of the dunes, Lake Michigan and the islands, the park service said. He conceived the idea of a road to the top of the dunes.

Planning for the road began in the early 1960s and, in 1967, the road, then known as the Sleeping Bear Dunes Park, first opened to the public.

Stocking continued to operate the scenic drive until his death in 1976. In 1977, the road became part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Several years later, based on public opinion, the drive was named the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive.

What is the Lake Michigan Overlook?

The overlook, 450 feet above Lake Michigan, provides a “magnificent view” of the shoreline, the park service said.

“If the visibility is good, to the south you can see Empire Bluffs 4 miles away and Platte Bay 9 miles away, both within the 106 square miles area of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore,” the NPS said on its website. “Still farther south is Point Betsie, the farthest point of land, 15 miles away as the crow flies. To the west, it is 54 miles across the lake to Wisconsin.”

What can I see on Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive?

The 7.4-mile drive includes 12 stops and takes about two hours.

It includes a covered bridge, the Glen Lake overlook, Picnic Mountain and dune overlook, the Cottonwood Trailhead, stops on dune ecology, Lake Michigan, Sleeping Bear and North Bar Lake overlooks, and a pine plantation.

How much do lakeshore passes cost?

Entrance passes to the lakeshore include a $25 standard pass, with varying prices for larger vehicles; $45 annual pass and America the Beautiful pass at varying prices. There are also seven-day digital passes.

The America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreation Lands pass is $80 for an annual pass, $80 for a senior lifetime pass, $20 for a senior annual pass and free for military annual pass, military lifetime pass, access pass, fourth grade pass, and volunteer pass.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Shifting sands close scenic Sleeping Bear overlook. What’s changed at the park

Reporting by Dan Basso, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal

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