Benzie & Sleeping Bear · Small town
Glen Arbor
Your base for northern Sleeping Bear Dunes: a small town between Lake Michigan and Glen Lake, about 4 miles from the Dune Climb by trail.
About 2 miles away (straight line)
Beach · Benzie & Sleeping Bear
Glen Haven Beach
A Lake Michigan beach on Sleeping Bear Bay at Glen Haven Historic Village, with seasonal restrooms, picnic areas, the Cannery Boat Museum and loaner sand wheelchairs.
Glen Haven Beach suits a beach day with a bit of history attached. It sits on Sleeping Bear Bay at Glen Haven Historic Village, inside Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a short drive or bike ride west of Glen Arbor on M-109.
The basics are close by: seasonal restrooms near the General Store with beach dressing areas, and picnic areas in the village. The Cannery Boat Museum sits right on the beach, and you can walk the shore west to the Maritime Museum at the old life-saving station.
It is one of the easier lakeshore beaches to reach if mobility matters. There is a short platform onto the sand by the Cannery, and the park lends sand wheelchairs and walkers there, first come, first served.
You need a national park entrance pass here, as at any lakeshore site. Dog rules depend on which way you walk and the time of year, so check the park’s pets page first.
There are no lifeguards. Lake Michigan can turn rough quickly, so watch for rip currents and stay out in high waves. The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail runs through Glen Haven if you would rather arrive by bike.
Practical information
- Managed by
- National Park Service
- Best months
- June to September
- Getting there
- Take M-109 from Glen Arbor toward Glen Haven. The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail also passes through Glen Haven.
- Official website
- nps.gov
Location
Map of Glen Haven Beach
4 places on an OpenStreetMap map
Nearby towns
Also nearby
Straight-line distances, not driving distances.
Museum
Maritime Museum at Sleeping Bear Point Life-Saving Station
A National Park Service museum in the 1901 Sleeping Bear Point Life-Saving Station at Glen Haven, on lifesaving, the Coast Guard and Great Lakes shipping.
Under a mile away (straight line)
Trail
Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail
A mostly paved trail of about 22 miles through Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, linking Empire, the Dune Climb, Glen Haven, Glen Arbor and Port Oneida.
About 1 miles away (straight line)
Attraction
The Dune Climb
A steep, open sand dune on M-109 in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, with a picnic area at its base and a hard trail over the dunes to Lake Michigan.
About 2 miles away (straight line)