Downstaters, this deal is worth staying Up North through Monday night. Locals? If you haven’t treated yourself to this Glen Arbor-duet yet, you are missing out on some good cheap fun. Here’s how it works:
Monday Afternoon: Pick up the Bay View Trail on Thoreson road a couple miles north of Glen Arbor off M-22, just past The Homestead resort. If you are heading north, bypass the first turn off to Thoreson Road—the southern end of the road is seasonal only—and pick it up a bit further up M-22. The trailhead is just around the corner on Thoreson, easily recognizable.
The Bay View Trail has two main loops. The one across the road from the parking area is a nice, rolling two-mile that winds past a couple of beautiful old farmsteads in what is called the Port Oneida Historic District. An organization called Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear helps the National Park Service manage the old farms—you’ll ski past its office in the sweet, white former Olsen farmhouse. A knoll on this two-mile loop offers one of the more picturesque views in Leelanau County that takes in several old barns and a swath of Lake Michigan.
If you’re craving a longer ski, the six-mile loop on the trailhead side of Thoreson Road winds through farm fields fringed with trees and Lake Michigan views. Thanks for making that point. To pick up a Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore pass, stop by the Philip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire. $10 per vehicle/week; $20 per vehicle/year; $5 per person. 231-326-5134; nps.gov/slbe/.
Monday Evening: Head into Art’s Tavern in Glen Arbor (corner of M-22 and Lake Street) where Monday’s from 5 to 9 p.m. it’s two-for-one-burger night. The deal includes sides—so if you and your two-for-one partner have a hankerin’ for Art’s to-die-for tator tots, you can both get them. 231-334-3754.
More on Hitting the Slopes
- The Michigan Ski Guide: Lower and Upper Peninsula
- Great Places to Learn to Ski—At Any Age
- Three Ski Towns to Explore
- Ski Town Take-Out
- Hot Apres Ski Towns
- Ski Guide: Swank or Spare?
- Post Slope Spa Treatments
- Where to Get Your Skiis Tuned
- Our Favorite Ski Slopes Names
- Master the U.P. Backcountry on Skiis
- Money Saving Tips for the Ski Season
- Ski and Snowboard Clothing and Gear for Northern Michigan Ski Slopes
- Interview with Slopeside Bartender
- Air Born: Ski Jumping in the U.P.
- Mackinac Island Ski Getaway
- The Ultimate Guide to Winter
- 2009 Ski and Snowboard Pass Deals at Northern Michigan Ski Resorts
Thanks for making that point. To pick up a Sleeping
Bear Dunes National Lakeshore pass, stop by the Philip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire. $10 per vehicle/week; $20 per vehicle/year; $5 per person. 231-326-5134.
Just so you know the ski isn’t 100% free.
Sleeping bear dunes requires a pass. When people read that it is free they get upset at the park when they find out they need a pass. or worse, they go and do the activity you have so clearly laid out and then return to their car to find a ticket. You should just clarify that part to ensure they get the correct visitor information.