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A dune sloping down to a Lake Michigan beach at sunset, Sleeping Bear Dunes

Region 3 of 6

Benzie & Sleeping Bear Country

Dunes, clear inland lakes and small harbor towns.

Benzie County and the Sleeping Bear shore hold some of the best-known scenery in the state: the national lakeshore’s dunes and bluffs, Crystal Lake, and a run of small towns from Frankfort north to Leland.

Most visits here are about the outdoors, from beach days to trails, paddling and scenic drives, with towns small enough to walk end to end.

This is an editorial grouping for trip planning, not a county or tourism-bureau boundary.

Regional map

Map of Benzie & Sleeping Bear Country

28 places on an OpenStreetMap map

Map of Benzie & Sleeping Bear Country. The same places are listed on this page.

Key destinations

A white pierhead lighthouse at the end of a long concrete pier at dusk.

Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Frankfort

A beach-and-lighthouse harbor town: a Lake Michigan beach at the end of Main Street, a breakwater light off the sand and Point Betsie up the shore.

Smaller towns

Small towns worth a detour.

Calm open water fading to an orange glow on the horizon after sunset.

Benzie & Sleeping Bear · Small town

Beulah

For an easy Crystal Lake day: Benzie County's small seat has a sandy village beach, a public launch and the Betsie Valley Trail running through.

The sun setting over open water beneath a pastel sky with scattered clouds.

Benzie & Sleeping Bear · Small town

Empire

Your first stop at Sleeping Bear Dunes: a small M-22 village with the park's main visitor center, a sunset beach and the start of the Heritage Trail.

Rippled sand in the foreground meeting a wide expanse of dark blue water under a pale sky.

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.

Shops line the main street through the village of Honor on a summer day.

Benzie & Sleeping Bear · Small town

Honor

For paddlers, anglers and fall salmon watchers: a small Benzie County village on US-31 with the Platte River running through and the state hatchery upstream.

A dirt path through dark trees leading to a wooden overlook with a sunset over water beyond.

Benzie & Sleeping Bear · Small town

Leland

Come for Fishtown, a working fishing village on the National Register, in a Leelanau village set between Lake Michigan and Lake Leelanau.

Lakes and rivers

The inland lakes, bays and rivers that bring many visitors here in summer.

The Beulah Beach sign at the east end of Crystal Lake, with the lake stretching away under autumn clouds.

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Crystal Lake

An all-sports lake: 9,854 acres, 165 feet deep and very clear. Swim at the sandy Beulah beach, fuel up at the marina, fish for trout and perch.

  • All-sports
  • Swim beach
  • Public launch
  • Rentals
Blue lake below hillsides of orange and gold fall trees

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Glen Lake

A clear two-basin lake at Glen Arbor: ski and cruise deep Big Glen from the marina, swim and paddle sandy Little Glen, ice fish for perch in winter.

  • All-sports
  • Swim beach
  • Public launch
  • Rentals
Shallow river winding across a sandy beach toward the lake under cloudy sky

River · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Platte River

An easy, clear, shallow river for tubing and paddling through Sleeping Bear Dunes to Platte Bay, with fall salmon and steelhead in fall and spring.

  • Swim beach
  • Public launch
  • Rentals
The Betsie River flows under a low bridge into Betsie Lake, with wooded hills beyond.

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Betsie Lake

Frankfort's no-wake harbor at the mouth of the Betsie River, with marinas on both shores, a big city launch and a short run to Lake Michigan.

  • Public launch
The Betsie River winds between spring-green trees east of Elberta.

River · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Betsie River

A protected Natural River from Interlochen to Frankfort: paddle and portage Homestead Dam, fish salmon in fall and steelhead from late fall into spring.

  • Public launch
  • Rentals
Red maples and white birches reflect in a still stretch of the Crystal River in fall.

River · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Crystal River

A gentle, clear, shallow float for families and first-time paddlers, winding from Glen Lake to Lake Michigan at Glen Arbor.

  • Public launch
  • Rentals
Wide view of Lake Leelanau under a cloudy autumn sky, with a sailboat moored near docks.

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Lake Leelanau

A long, clear, all-sports lake down the Leelanau Peninsula: walleye in both basins, lake trout in the deep north, township beaches and winter ice fishing.

  • All-sports
  • Swim beach
  • Public launch

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Lower Herring Lake

A small, clear, all-sports lake by the Lake Michigan shore south of Frankfort, with a DNR launch, sandy shores, smallmouth and walleye, and sunset paddles.

  • All-sports
  • Public launch

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Platte Lake

An all-sports lake of about 2,500 acres near Honor: ski, tube and sail, then fish for walleye and smallmouth. The no-wake Platte River runs on to Lake Michigan.

  • All-sports
  • Public launch
Reeds poke through the calm water of Upper Herring Lake below wooded hills in early fall.

Lake · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

Upper Herring Lake

A quiet 540-acre lake south of Frankfort, all-sports but shallow, for kayaking along a conservancy preserve and fishing for walleye to bluegill.

  • All-sports
  • Public launch

Major attractions

Road through yellow fall foliage leading to a red covered bridge

Scenic drive

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

A 7.4-mile one-way loop in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore with 12 stops and overlooks of Lake Michigan, the Glen Lakes and the dunes.

Point Betsie Lighthouse and its red-roofed keeper's house rise above dune grass and poplars.

Lighthouse

Point Betsie Lighthouse

An 1850s brick lighthouse on the Lake Michigan shore north of Frankfort, with a museum, a climbable tower and a public beach beside it.

A grassy dune ridge above the blue water of Lake Michigan at Sleeping Bear Dunes

National park

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Dunes, high bluffs, beaches, inland lakes and two islands along 65 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline in Benzie and Leelanau counties.

Paved trail through green forest beside a Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail sign

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.

Hikers climbing a steep sand dune under a deep blue sky

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.

A welcome sign and map stand beside the paved Betsie Valley Trail.

Trail

Betsie Valley Trail

A 22-mile rail trail from Frankfort past Crystal Lake and Beulah, paved at the west end and aggregate beyond, with snowmobiling on the east part in winter.

Skiers ride a chairlift above snowy runs at Crystal Mountain, with wooded hills beyond.

Ski area

Crystal Mountain

A four-season resort in Thompsonville with 59 downhill runs, 25 km of Nordic trails and groomed winter bike trails, plus singletrack and golf in summer.

Frankfort North Breakwater Lighthouse coated in ice, its lamp lit, against a dark winter sky over frozen Lake Michigan

Lighthouse

Frankfort North Breakwater Lighthouse

A 67-foot square steel lighthouse at the head of Frankfort's north breakwater, marking the harbor entrance in full view of the city beach.

Historic site

Garden Theater

Frankfort's 1923 Main Street movie house, renovated and run by a nonprofit, showing first-run and independent films and home to the Frankfort Film Festival.

Attraction

Glen Arbor Arts Center

Glen Arbor's community arts center on Lake Street, with free gallery exhibits, classes for adults and kids, and Plein Air Weekend in August.

A curving Lake Michigan shoreline and high bluffs seen over green treetops from a trail end at Green Point Dunes.

Nature preserve

Green Point Dunes Nature Preserve

A 242-acre land conservancy preserve south of Elberta, with a trail of nearly three miles round trip through forest and meadow to Lake Michigan views.

Upcoming events

Glen Arbor Holiday Market

November 27 to 28, 2026

Glen Arbor · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

HolidayMarketArts

Beulah Winterfest

Saturday, February 13, 2027

Beulah · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

FestivalFamilyOutdoors

Beulah Art Fair

Saturday, July 10, 2027, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

Beulah · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

ArtsMarket

Crystal Lake Team Marathon

Saturday, August 14, 2027, 8:00 am to 1:30 pm

Beulah · Benzie & Sleeping Bear

SportsOutdoors

All events in this region

Sample itineraries

  • An Arcadia Bluffs golf trip

    Three days of golf on the Manistee County shore, built around Arcadia Bluffs, with Manistee courses, a Lake Michigan beach and a sunset overlook.

  • A Sleeping Bear long weekend

    Three days from Frankfort to Glen Arbor, with two lighthouses, a Crystal Lake swim, the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive and the Dune Climb.

  • A Traverse City long weekend

    Three days based in Traverse City, with Front Street, Clinch Park and the TART, Old Mission Peninsula to Mission Point Lighthouse, and a Sleeping Bear day.