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Welcome to the Sleeping Bear News Page. We'll keep you posted with news from the Park and other news of interest involving the Sleeping Bear Area. If you have news or events which belong here, please e-mail them to dunes@leelanau.com.
posted 02.17.06 PARK OPEN HOUSE WELL ATTENDED, WILDERNESS A HOT TOPIC The Leelanau Enterprise reports that nearly 100 local citizens showed up at an open house Tuesday at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Visitor Center in Empire to learn and offer comments about the creation of a new 20-year General Management Plan for the park. Uproar over Wilderness Designation torpedoed the last GMP process and it looks as if the park will be focusing on explaining what that means. According to Asst. Superintendent Tom Ulrich "You can ski, hike or snowshoe in a wilderness area. A wilderness area is designed for recreation and designed to be accessible, it's just for non-mechanized recreation." Read 'Wilderness' issue draws park interest. posted 01.23.06 LAKESHORE STARTS GENERAL PLAN PROCESS The Leelanau Enterprise reports that the National Park Service will again seek to write a 20-year General Management Plan for the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to replace the one written in 1978. A previous attempt was halted in 2002. The park service will release more information and meeting times and dates. Read Lakeshore plan to start anew. posted 12.22.05 SLEEPING BEAR DUNES SNOWSHOE HIKES The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore will host a series of snowshoe hikes in the park this winter. Holiday hikes will begin at the visitor's center on M-72 in Empire at 1 PM Dec 27 and Dec 30. Hikes will also be offered every Saturday and Sunday in January and February (starting Jan 7). The park will provide a limited supply of snowshoes at no charge and you can call 231-326-5134 (ext. 328) for details or info. Read Snowshoe hikes at Sleeping Bear. posted 10.13.05 HUNTING PERMITS FOR NORTH MANITOU The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has permits available for muzzleloader season on North Manitou Island. The first firearm season is Oct 23-30 and the second firearm season Oct. 30 to Nov. 1. Extensive information about the hunts and the permit application form is available online or by calling (231) 326-5134. Read Deer hunting permits available. posted 01.20.05 SLEEPING BEAR DUNES FIRE POLICY COMMENT SOUGHT The Leelanau Enterprise reports that officials of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore are seeking public comment on an environmental assessment conducted for a fire management plan that will outline how the National Park Service should deal with wildland fires and conduct prescribed fires. Read the Enterprise story. posted 01.05.05 PHOTO FEATURE ON SLEEPING BEAR DUNES SNOWSHOE HIKES The Traverse City Record-Eagle has a photo story on ranger-led snowshoe hikes in the Dunes. View the feature (adobe pdf) posted 01.05.05 CAMERAS HUNT FOR COUGARS IN SLEEPING BEAR DUNES The Detroit Free Press reports that scientists mounted motion-detecting, still field cameras in trees a couple of months ago at five locations around Sleeping Bear Dunes, hoping to catch photos of cougars. Read the story. posted 06.16.04 $1 MILLION FOR CRYSTAL RIVER The Leelanau Enterprise reports that the National Park Service budget includes $1 million seed money for purchase of a 104-acre parcel from The Homestead Resort for the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The value of the parcel is appraised at $7-9 million. Read the story. posted 05.21.04 WILDERNESS WITHIN THE LAKESHORE The Leelanau Enterprise reports that the National Park Service will soon be initiating informal dialogue with the public about the future of land eligible for wilderness designation within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Read the story. posted 02.27.04 SLEEPING BEAR WILDERNESS MEETINGS The Leelanau Enterprise reports that meetings with the public regarding wilderness issues and concerns within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore will likely resume this spring or summer. This is part of the Lakeshore's General Management Plan process. "It was clear through the public scoping process two years ago that we had gotten out ahead of the public on certain issues, and we still need to deal with some of those issues before the General Management Plan process can resume,� Sleeping Bear assistant superintendent Tom Ulrich said this week. �We expect to be in contact with members of the public this summer and hope to discuss some of these issues face-to-face with various groups and individuals who have expressed the strongest concerns." Read the story. posted 09.29.03 $1,000,000 FOR DUNES ACQUISITIONS The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the U.S. Department of the Interior has earmarked $1 million for land acquisitions in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The money could be used to help purchase Crystal River property owned by the Homestead. Read the story. posted 09.16.03 MEET THE PARK SUPERINTENDENT The Traverse City Record-Eagle hs a feature on Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Superintendent Dusty Schultz and what's on her plate (and mind). Read the story. posted 07.31.02 LAKESHORE RE-EVALUATES PLAN The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the Park Service (in response to a lot of public comment) is backing off plans to close certain roads & to remove coho salmon from the Lakeshore. The Record-Eagle also has printed a letter from Park Superintendent Dusty Schultz. Read the story and the letter. posted 07.26.02 HOMESTEAD / PARK LAND SWAP PROPOSED The Leelanau Enterprise reports that a proposed land swap between the Homestead Resort and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore for about 1 mile (130 acres) of Crystal River frontage for 168 acres of park property next to the Homestead has already drawn opposition from the Michigan Land Use Institute. Read the Enterprise story and Free Press story. Posted 07.10.02 FIRST OPEN HOUSE REPORT The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the first open house regarding the proposed plan for management of the Sleeping Bear Dunes drew about 200 people with concerns including road closings, the N. Manitou deer herd & salmon in the Platte River. Two more open houses are scheduled for tomorrow & Thursday! Read the story. Posted 07.09.02 DUNE PLAN GENERATES CONCERN The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the "preliminary preferred alternative" for management of the Sleeping Bear Dunes has generated concerns including limited public access to certain areas and the elimination of the North Manitou deer herd. Public forums are scheduled for this week! Read more... Posted 06.21.02 SLEEPING BEAR PLAN The Leelanau Enterprise has an excellent analysis of the preferred alternative for the new park management plan for the National Lakeshore. Public comment forums are scheduled for July 9 (6-9 PM @ Park Headquarters), July 10 (2-5 PM @ the Traverse City Library) and July 11 (9:30 - noon @ the Sail Restaurant in Benzonia). We urge you to read the Enterprise story and/or get a copy of the draft. Posted 05.09.02 STUPAK CALLS FOR MORE FIRE PLAN COMMENT The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that US Rep. Bart Stupak is calling for additional public comment opportunities regarding the revision of the Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore's fire management plan. Possible changes include "prescribed burns" and abandoning the current practice of full suppression of fires within the park. Record-Eagle Story. Posted 04.01.02 PORT ONEIDA PRESERVATION This morning's Traverse City Record-Eagle has an excellent piece on the many historical preservation efforts taking place on Port Oneida. Complete story in the Record-Eagle. Posted 03.04.02 SLEEPING BEAR BACKGROUNDS Visit Leelanau.com's Backgrounds Page for a collection pf photo backgrounds for your computer with many scenes from the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Posted 07.27.01 NEW PARK SUPERINTENDENT The Leelanau Enterprise reports that Dusty G. Schultz has been selected as the superintendent of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. She assumes the post on August 26th and currently serves as superintendent of the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. She appears to have extensive experience in the management of historic sites which probably bodes well for historical preservation within the lakeshore. Posted 06.03.01 SLEEPING BEAR DUNES MANAGEMENT PLAN There were a series of Open Houses in June of 2001 to allow the public to ask questions and make comments about how the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore should be managed. You can still contact the park via a special email address with your comments: slbe_gmp@nps.gov. To learn more about the process, visit the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore home page and click the blue "inDepth" button! Posted 05.01.01 NORTH BAR LAKE STABILIZATION The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore workers continue to work to try and slow the filling of North Bar Lake with sand. Park officials estimate that 14 tons of sand has blown into the popular swimming lake in the last 20 years. They report that last week's transplant of 900 dune grass plants (a great stabilizer) seem to have taken. Complete story in the Record-Eagle. Posted 02.05.01 PARKS PHOTO CONTEST The National Parks Pass Experience Your America Photo Contest has been announced. Participants are invited to submit their favorite National Park photo and the winning photo will appear on the 2002 Parks Pass. Photos must be submitted in Kodak APS format or slides. The contest ends March 15, 2001 and is not open to professional photographers. Learn more at NationalParks.org. Posted 02.02.01 MR. MILLER GOES TO ARKANSAS The Leelanau Enterprise reports that current Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore superintendent Ivan Miller will be leaving the Lakeshore in April for a post as superintendent of the Buffalo Natural River in Arkansas. Administrative officer Dan Krieber will take over as acting superintendent. Complete story in the Enterprise. Posted 01.23.01 SLEEPING BEAR CROSS COUNTRY SKIING The Traverse City Record-Eagle has a nice feature by Mike Terrell about cross-country skiing in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. You can read the story in the Record-Eagle and view trail maps at our (unofficial, but very good) trails page. Posted 07.10.00 CONCERT AT THE DUNES A free concert by the Traverse Symphony Orchestra will be held at the Sleeping Bear Dunes "Dune Climb" on Sunday, July 16th at 7:30 PM. The theme is "Legend of the Sleeping Bear" and the concert is part of the Manitou Music Festival. The TSO is conducted by David Holland and they will be joined by cellist Crispin Campbell and Odawa storyteller Kenny Pheasant. This is a once in a lifetime experience -- be there! Posted 05.25.00 ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE SELECTED Former Leelanau resident and painter Melanie Parke of Kaleva, MI and Jerry Power of Sterling Heights, MI were selected as this year's Artist in Residence program at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. As an interesting note, Melanie helped to start the program eight years ago. Posted 04.18.00 NATIONAL PARKS PASS Starting today, visitors to the Dunes will be able to purchase a National Parks Pass that is good for a year at any of our 379 national parks. The pass will sell for $50 and $35 of the price goes to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Posted 02.01.00 PIPING PLOVER HABITAT A tentative agreement between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Defenders of Wildlife, an environmental group, has been reached that would set aside habitat for the endangered piping plover. The piping plover nests and lives along the Lake Michigan shore in several locations in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and other places. Details on the location(s) of habitats have not yet been released. You can read more about piping plovers in a story further down on this page. Posted 01.14.00 SNOWSHOE HIKES IN THE LAKESHORE The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore will be offering ranger-guided snowshoe hikes at 1 PM every Saturday and Sunday (conditions permitting) starting January 15 and continuing through February. Snowshoers of all ages are welcome to meet at the Park Headquarters in Empire. Call 326-5134 ext. 329 for reservations. Check the NPS web site for more info! Posted 12.06.99 ABOUT FACE The TC Record-Eagle is reporting that the National Park Service seems to have taken an about face in its attitude toward park management, especially with regards to historical properties. The plans include restoration of many structures and a bed and breakfast, old time grocery store and blacksmith's shop in Glen Haven. Read the complete story in the Record-Eagle. Posted 10.7.99 PARKS Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore personell and students from Glen Lake High School have held their first work days this year under a Parks as Resources for Knowledge and Science grant. The work focuses upon returning to a natural state areas of the Lakeshore that have been adversly affected by human activity. Students gathered information on plants and soil and removed exotic plants and (of course) trash. Future work will include replanting native vegetation. The Park Service has released information for deer hunters visiting the park this year. Read more about it here. Posted 9.20.99 MERCURY REPORT The National Wildlife Federation has released a report entitled Clean the Rain, Clean the Lakes: Mercury in Rain Is Polluting The Great Lakes [in Adobe PDF format - 550k]. The report reveals that the rain falling in the Midwest is not as clean as we think. Across the region, rain contains levels of mercury that exceed what the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe for water in the Great Lakes and other waterways. Mercury is an extremely potent toxin, and according to Beverly McClellan of the Lake Michigan Federation, "A drop of mercury as small as 1/70th of a teaspoon can contaminate a 25-acre lake to the point that the fish in it are unsafe to eat. When you consider a typical 100 megawatt power plant emits about 25 pounds of mercury a year, the potential for tremendous ecological and human health problems becomes alarmingly clear." Readings were taken across the region. Concentrations ranged from a high of 117 parts per trillion (ppt) to a low of 3 ppt in Detroit with the mean concentration of 17 ppt, typical of industrial areas. Rural areas fared better, but not much. Measurements at the Sleeping Bear Dunes revealed a high of 63.6 ppt, a low of 2.1 and a mean of 10.8. For perspective, the safe level for humans set by the EPA is 1.8 ppt. The NWF is advising you to take action. We advise you to Read the press release [in HTML format - 16K] Posted 9.2.99 PETE Chuck Schnake, a Leland summer resident, has been been getting a lot of ink for the 1 ton, 40" long Petoskey stone he found in the woods. He calls it "Pete" and hopes that it could one day grace the grounds of the State Capitol. Currently, the boulder is on display at the Lake Michigan Overlook on Pierce Stocking Drive. Want to read more? Take your pick: Posted 8.23.99 USER FEE COLLECTION (AND VISITOR) TOTALS HIGHER THAN ANTICIPATED The Detroit Free Press reports that Park Superintendant Ivan D. Miller expects fees collected at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to generate over than $1 million this year, three times what park officials originally predicted. The money will be used for reroofing historic buildings, grooming trails, upgrading parking and campsites, increasing accessibility for disabled people and helping protect endangered species, like the piping plover. This July attendance at the Lakeshore was up 14% over last year. Read complete story in the Free Press. Posted 6.21.99 PIPING PLOVER UPDATE The endangered piping plover, a small shorebird, is making a comeback according the Michigan DNR. The Free Press has a feature citing the DNR as reporting 30 nesting pairs (up from 26 last year). There are a few areas in the dunes (at the mouth of the Platte River and on North Manitou Island) where warnings are posted -- AVOID THESE AREAS PLEASE!! Read the complete article or click to learn more about piping plovers. Posted 6.14.99 LEELANAU GOES TO WASHINGTON This weekend the Washington Post Travel Section featured Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes as a beach destination. The article noted Leelanau is "one of America's most extravagantly under-exploited stretches of waterfront property". Well, let's hope it stays that way. Read the Article. Posted 5.19.99 UNOFFICIAL SLEEPING BEAR DUNES SITE UPDATES We've posted 1999 camping and user fee rates and some new information about campgrounds. Have a look Posted 5.13.99 ARTIST IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM Selections for the program for fall of '99 have been announced: Larry Vienneau of Fairbanks, Alaska and Traverse City resident Kenneth Richmond. PIPING PLOVERS The Park is asking for you cooperation to honor the signs they've posted to protect nesting areas for the endangered piping plover. The signs will be posted near the mouth of the Platte River and on North Manitou Island. NEW VISITOR FACILITY The Lakeshore will have another location to help out visitors. The facility will open this Saturday at the Dune Climb and will offer info on the natural and cultural history of the area. Updated 4.14.99 HOMESTEAD GOLF COURSE One of Leelanau County's longest running land use battles returns to the news as the Homestead Resort of Glen Arbor resubmits an application to the US Army Corps of Engineers in Detroit for a golf course on the Crystal River. Read the Full Story in the Record-Eagle. The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that the Friends of the Crystal River, a group that has been battling the proposed golf course at the Homestead Resort, is revving up again. Click for the Story and a nice map. What do you think?? Post a message in the Sleeping Bear Dunes Discussion Forum (link at top left). Posted 1.19.99 NPS INTERNET CAMPGROUND REGISTRATION The National Park Service now has an Internet Camping Reservation System which will allow you to make reservations at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore campgrounds. Check it out at: http://reservations.nps.gov/. Posted 11.18.98 NEW DUNES BOOK! Just received the latest book from Sleeping Bear Press: Views from the Sleeping Bear by Traverse City photographer Thomas Kachadurian. The book is amazing! It features over 100 pages of gorgeous photos of the Lakeshore with short essays. If you know someone who loves the dunes, get them this book. Read an excerpt in the Northern Michigan Journal. Look for a review and excerpt of it in the winter issue of Northern Michigan Journal. Posted 11.1.98 LEGEND OF THE SLEEPING BEAR TV PROGRAM Sleeping Bear Press has announced that an animated version of this summer's runaway bestseller children's book: Legend of the Sleeping Bear, will air on TV stations across the state in November and December. The show will be narrated by Jeff Daniels and is produced by Peterson Productions of Traverse City. Posted 10.12.98 Updated 10.15.98 P.A.R.K.S. GRANT The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and partner school Glen Lake Community Schools have received a $25,000 grant from the Parks as Resources for Knowledge in Science (PARKS), a program of Exxon and the National Park Foundation. The grant will provide for the training of two teachers and a National Lakeshore interpreter and provides funds for their project: Ecological Restoration of Disturbed Lands in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Under the project, Glen Lake students work with Lakeshore personell to return areas in the park to their natural state through plantings of native plants such as dunegrass. UPDATE: You can read a nice feature about this project in the Traverse City Record-Eagle's Online Archive. Posted 9.15.98 Updated 10.15.98 LEELANAU CONSERVANCY SEEKS LAND FOR SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL LAKESHORE The Leelanau Conservancy announced today that it is seeking to have approximately 180 acres of land in Glen Arbor, Michigan acquired for inclusion in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. "We are pleased to have initiated discussions which could add this pristine land, with several miles of Crystal River frontage on it, and a vitally important historic structure to the Lakeshore," said Brian Price, Executive Director of the Leelanau Conservancy. "Our goal is to preserve this land for public use." If current discussions lead to an agreement, the property would be transferred to the Lakeshore if the boundary is expanded to include it and funds are appropriated by Congress. If the transfer occurs, the purchase price will be at appraised value determined in accord with National Park Service standards. The Leelanau Conservancy Board voted unanimously last week to proceed with the project, provided it has broad-based support. Because Congress is expected to adjourn early this fall, the Conservancy is working to reach an agreement over the next couple of weeks. As a result, the Conservancy would welcome evidence of support from community groups, the affected local governments and others as soon as possible. UPDATE: The Leelanau County Board of Commissioners voted 4-1 to support this effort. Contact Brian Price, Executive Director of the Leelanau Conservancy - 231-256-9665 or visit their web site at www.theconservancy.com/. Posted 9.25.98 NATIONAL LAKESHORE BAN ON PERSONAL WATERCRAFT TAKES EFFECT Superintendant Ivan D. Miller has announced an interim ban on personal watercraft within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore which took effect on Sept. 23, 1998. "Personal watercraft" includes jet skis, waverunner's, etc. Reasons behind the ban include protection of wildlife, preservation of quiet and solitude and pollution reduction. The ban applies on the waters of Lake Michigan within 1/4 mile of the mainland and North & South Manitou Islands and all inland lakes within the Park. |
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