Things to Do at Sleeping Bear Dunes This Winter (2026-27)

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore never closes, but it changes character fast once October ends. The scenic drive gates come down for the season, the Dune Center and General Store shut for the year, one campground goes dark and deer hunters share the woods with hikers. Then the snow arrives, and the same roads and paths turn into some of the best free-form ski and snowshoe country in the Lower Peninsula.

This guide covers late October through the heart of winter: what is open, the dates to circle, passes, places to sleep and staying safe. Every hour, date and price below was checked on the National Park Service’s pages and other organizers’ sites on Oct. 21, 2026. Conditions change quickly on the shore, so check before you go.

Quick picks

Drive Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive while it is still open to cars, then come back on foot or skis after it closes.
Start at the Philip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire, open daily 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Ski the groomed Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail between Glen Arbor and the Dune Climb once there is a base.
Sled the Dune Climb, the one place in the park built for it, when it is snow-covered.
Wear blaze orange from Nov. 15 to 30, Michigan’s regular firearm deer season.

What’s open, and what is closing

The lakeshore itself, including its roads, trailheads and parking lots, is open 24 hours a day all year, according to the park. Individual buildings and campgrounds keep their own schedules.

Philip A. Hart Visitor Center (9922 Front St., Empire, just east of where M-72 meets M-22): 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day. The park lists it as closed on Thanksgiving (Nov. 26), Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It sells passes and maps and has free Wi-Fi.
Dune Center and the General Store: both have their last day of the season on Saturday, Oct. 31, per the park’s current-conditions page.
Already closed for the season: the Glen Haven Cannery Boat Museum, Maritime Museum and Blacksmith Shop, and the Port Oneida Heritage Center. Facilities and docks on both Manitou Islands are closed while the park relocates the docks.
D.H. Day Campground near Glen Haven stays open through Sunday, Nov. 22, with first-come self-registration, no water and the office closed. It then closes from Nov. 23 until April 26.
Platte River Campground in the park’s south end is open year-round.

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive: by car now, on foot later

The 7.4-mile one-way loop off M-109 is the park’s signature drive, with 12 numbered stops, including the Lake Michigan Overlook (No. 9). The park says the road is generally open to vehicles from late May until late October, and its current-conditions page still listed it as open when we checked. Go soon if you want the overlooks from your car. The limit is 20 mph, and trailers are not allowed.

Once the gate closes, the road stays open on foot, though the park warns its steep grades get slick under wet leaves and rain. After snow falls, the unplowed loop combines with the Shauger Hill Trail to make the Scenic Drive Ski Trail, about 8 miles of hilly beech-maple forest with Lake Michigan views. Park in the lot just past the entrance, stay back from the bluff edge and leave pets home from Dec. 1 to March 31.

Late-fall hikes

On Oct. 13 the park said fall color was near peak and pointed visitors to three places: the North Bar Lake Overlook on the scenic drive, the Meadow Loop on the Pyramid Point Trail and the Carsten and Elizabeth Burfiend Farm in Port Oneida. Bare November trees open up lake views hidden in summer.

Short options: the Empire Bluff Trail (1.5 miles round trip, moderate, trailhead on Wilco Road off M-22) climbs to a lake overlook; the Old Indian Trail (2.5 miles, easy) loops through low dunes to the shore off M-22 north of Sutter Road; and the sandy Cottonwood Trail at scenic drive stop No. 4 allows leashed pets but has no winter access.

Winter: skiing, snowshoeing, sledding and ice fishing

Cross-country skiing. The park’s ski trails include Alligator Hill, Bay View, Good Harbor Bay, Old Indian, Shauger Hill, Windy Moraine, the Platte Plains loops and the Scenic Drive. Grooming happens only on the Heritage Trail; earlier skiers usually break tracks on the rest.

Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail. The mostly paved trail runs about 22 miles from Empire to Bohemian Road (County Road 669), by the park’s count. In winter, a volunteer crew from Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes grooms roughly 10 miles for classic and skate skiing, from Forest Haven Road in Glen Arbor to Voice and Bar Lake roads north of Empire. Glen Haven to Glen Arbor, with a loop through D.H. Day Campground, comes first, followed by the Glen Haven–Dune Climb leg; the stretch to Empire gets groomed when volunteers and temperatures allow. Snowshoers should stay out of the set tracks.

Snowshoeing. The park allows snowshoeing on any snow-covered dune, field or forest, though it recommends marked routes. Ranger-led snowshoe hikes are posted on the park’s calendar with registration details; the park describes them as mildly strenuous and about a mile and a half. Last winter, MLive reported, free ranger hikes went out on Saturdays from the Dune Climb through Feb. 28. Watch the calendar for this winter’s dates.

Sledding. It is allowed only inside the marked zone at the Dune Climb on M-109, and only when snow covers it.

Ice fishing follows state rules, with limits on powered augers; the park offers a free permit at the visitor center. Snowmobiling is not allowed anywhere on the lakeshore’s lands or waters.

Dates to know (Oct. 25, 2026 – Jan. 1, 2027)

Sun., Oct. 25: Two free ranger programs (park pass required) taught by Anishinaabe historian Eric Hemenway: “Anishinaabek and The Great Lakes,” 11 a.m. to noon at scenic drive stop No. 11; and “The Falling Leaves Moon,” 2 to 3 p.m. at the picnic tables near the Dune Center parking lot, with no dune climbing.
Sun., Oct. 25: Daytime trick-or-treating at participating businesses in downtown Glen Arbor, noon to 3 p.m., free, from the Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce.
Tue., Oct. 27: National park fee-free day for U.S. citizens and residents.
Sat., Oct. 31: Last day of the season for the Dune Center and General Store.
Wed., Nov. 11 (Veterans Day): Another fee-free day.
Nov. 15–30: Regular firearm deer season statewide, according to the Michigan DNR. The Lower Peninsula’s December firearm season is Dec. 4–6.
Sun., Nov. 22: Last night at D.H. Day Campground until spring.
Fri., Nov. 27: Glen Arbor tree lighting and caroling at 6:15 p.m. outside the Town Hall, then a market preview party, 6:30 to 8 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 28: Glen Arbor Holiday Marketplace, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Town Hall, with more than 25 vendors, per the chamber.
Dec. 1: Pets come off the ski trails and the Heritage Trail through March 31.

Heading into Traverse City too? See our stories on the Iceman Cometh Challenge on Nov. 7, Deer Widow’s Weekend on Nov. 14-15 and Light Up Downtown on Nov. 20-21.

Hunting season: share the woods safely

Most of the lakeshore is open to hunting under state law. The park asks non-hunters to wear blaze orange or other bright colors and to stick to marked trails and beaches. Hunting is barred within 450 feet of occupied buildings, the campgrounds, and the Glen Lake and Good Harbor picnic areas. The scenic drive is closed to hunting only while it is open to cars; once the gate closes, hunting is allowed in that zone, so walkers and skiers on the drive should dress to be seen.

Passes and fees

Everyone needs an entrance pass, and the park is cashless. Current prices on the park’s fees page: $25 for a private vehicle (good for seven days), $20 for a motorcycle, $15 per person 16 or older arriving on foot or by bike, and $45 for a Sleeping Bear annual pass. An America the Beautiful pass also works ($80 resident annual; $20 senior annual or $80 senior lifetime). The seven-day pass is also sold online through Recreation.gov.

Where to stay

Camping, year-round: Platte River Campground stays open all winter, with showers and restrooms. From Nov. 1 to April 30 the office is closed and sites 201–224 are available by self-registration. The park lists regular rates of $26, or $31 with electric.
Camping, late fall only: D.H. Day Campground, rustic with vault toilets, is $10 a night by self-registration through Nov. 22.
Village lodging: Glen Arbor and Empire have inns, cottages and vacation rentals; the Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce lists members and off-season offers.
A city base: Traverse City, east on M-72, has the widest choice of hotels and restaurants open all winter. See our Traverse City fall guide.

Camping is allowed only in designated sites. The park says sleeping in a parked car overnight is illegal anywhere in the lakeshore.

A sample winter day

Pick up a pass and a ski map at the Hart Visitor Center in Empire when it opens at 9 a.m. Drive north on M-22 and M-109 to the Dune Climb, ski the groomed Heritage Trail to Glen Haven and back, and let the kids sled the snow-covered climb. Warm up over lunch in Glen Arbor, then snowshoe the Empire Bluff Trail for late light on the lake, off the bluff before dark.

Tips

Stay off bluff edges and shoreline ice. The park warns that lakeshore ice formations are dangerous and that avalanches can happen on steep snow-covered dunes.
Bring a card or phone wallet. No cash is accepted for passes or camping.
Check the Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes ski report before you load the skis; grooming depends on volunteers, snow and temperatures below about 30 degrees.
Drones are prohibited throughout the park.

Official sites and maps

National Park Service: current conditions, winter activities, trails, fees and passes, program calendar and maps; park phone 231-326-4700.
Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes, Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail and winter conditions.
Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce, visitglenarbor.com.
Michigan DNR, hunting season calendar.

More from Up North

Sources:
National Park Service, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: “Current Conditions,” nps.gov; “Explore Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive,” nps.gov; “Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive Ski Trail,” nps.gov; “Hiking Trails,” nps.gov; “Winter Activities,” nps.gov; “Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail,” nps.gov; “Fees & Passes,” nps.gov; “Visitor Centers,” nps.gov; “Camping,” nps.gov; “Platte River Campground,” nps.gov; “Hunting,” nps.gov; “Pets,” nps.gov; program calendar, nps.gov
Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes, “Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail,” friendsofsleepingbear.org; “Enjoy the Trail this Winter!,” sleepingbeartrail.org
Michigan Department of Natural Resources, “Hunting Season Calendar,” michigan.gov
Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce, “Trick or Treating in Glen Arbor 2026” and “Holiday Market 2026,” visitglenarbor.com
MLive, “Expert or novice, here’s 10 trails in Sleeping Bear Dunes to snowshoe and cross-country ski,” Feb. 26, 2026, mlive.com
Photo: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, “Sleeping Bear Bluff in Winter (9085511671).jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/), cropped and color-corrected, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sleeping_Bear_Bluff_in_Winter_(9085511671).jpg

All Mitten Daily guides

Sleeping Bear Dunes in Late Fall and Winter 2026-27: Trails, Pierce Stocking Closing, Passes and Skiing