Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes
Traverse City
A bayfront city at the head of Grand Traverse Bay, with a walkable Front Street downtown, bay beaches, cherry orchards and two wine peninsulas close by.
Scenic drive · M-22, M-109
M-22 around the Leelanau Peninsula
The designated byway loop from Traverse City up the bay side to Northport, then down the Lake Michigan side through Leland, Glen Arbor and Empire.
M-22 leaves Traverse City and loops around the Leelanau Peninsula, and the Leelanau County portion has been a designated scenic route since 2002, first as a Michigan Heritage Route and now as a Pure Michigan Byway. The byway starts at the Traverse City line and runs north along Grand Traverse Bay through Suttons Bay to Northport, near the tip of the peninsula, before turning south down the Lake Michigan side.
From Northport the road heads to Leland and its historic Fishtown, then follows the shore into Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. At Glen Arbor the byway switches to M-109, which passes Glen Haven’s life-saving station museum, the Dune Climb and the entrance to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive before meeting M-22 again at Empire, home of the park’s visitor center.
Summer is the busy season in the villages and at the park. Fall is the other favorite time, and Traverse City Tourism names M-22 among its suggested color drives. The byway also includes the M-204 connector across the middle of the county at the Lake Leelanau narrows, a handy shortcut back toward the bay side.
The route
Map of M-22 around the Leelanau Peninsula
7 places on an OpenStreetMap map
Before you go
- Between Glen Arbor and Empire the byway follows M-109 past Glen Haven and the Dune Climb, while M-22 itself takes an inland route between the Glen Lakes.
- Driving through Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on state and county roads is free, but stopping to use park land requires an entrance pass.
- Traverse City Tourism notes that fall color usually peaks around mid-October, with shoreline trees often turning earlier than those inland.
Towns along the way
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.
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.
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.
Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes · Small town
Northport
The last village on the Leelanau Peninsula, a harbor town on Grand Traverse Bay close to a state park, the Grand Traverse Lighthouse and beach trails.
Grand Traverse & Inland Lakes · Small town
Suttons Bay
A walkable Leelanau village on Grand Traverse Bay with a public beach, a marina and a historic downtown, and the north end of the paved Leelanau Trail.
Stops worth making
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.
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.
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.
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.