Leelanau State Park

Leelanau State Park occupies the very tip of the Leelanau Peninsula, where Grand Traverse Bay meets Lake Michigan in Leelanau County north of Northport. Spread across two units, it combines maritime history with wild northern shoreline: at the point stands the historic Grand Traverse Lighthouse, while a few miles south the Cathead Bay unit protects undeveloped beach, dunes and forest.

The lighthouse, now a museum, marks the strategic point ships round entering or leaving Grand Traverse Bay, and its grounds offer rocky beaches famous for hunting Petoskey and beach stones. The Cathead Bay unit, reached by a forest trail, rewards hikers with a quiet, wild Lake Michigan beach and dune overlooks. With its lighthouse, trails, stone-strewn shores and rustic campground at land’s end, Leelanau State Park is a scenic and historic gem at the top of the peninsula.

The park offers two distinct experiences — touring the historic Grand Traverse Lighthouse museum and exploring the rocky, stone-hunting beaches at the point, and hiking the Cathead Bay unit’s forest trails (the Cathead Bay trails) to a quiet, undeveloped Lake Michigan beach and dune overlook. Rock and Petoskey-stone hunting, beachcombing, hiking, birding and a rustic campground at the lighthouse round out a visit to the wild tip of the Leelanau Peninsula.

Summer brings warm water, the fullest lighthouse-museum hours and the best beach days — reserve the rustic campsites early. Spring and fall are prime for stone hunting and quiet trails, with fall color through the peninsula’s forests. The lighthouse operates seasonally; winter leaves a wild, snowy point. Time a visit for summer to combine the lighthouse, the beaches and the Cathead Bay hike, or the shoulder seasons for solitude and stones.

The Grand Traverse Lighthouse, first established in 1852 and rebuilt in its present form in 1858, marks the strategic point at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula where ships round entering or leaving Grand Traverse Bay. It guided the bay’s lumber and passenger traffic for over a century. Now preserved as a museum within Leelanau State Park, it anchors the maritime heritage of the peninsula, while the surrounding park protects the wild shore and forest at land’s end.

The park sits at the glacially shaped tip of the Leelanau Peninsula, where Grand Traverse Bay meets Lake Michigan. Its rocky, stone-strewn beaches are rich in Petoskey stones and other glacially scattered, wave-tumbled pebbles, reflecting the limestone-influenced geology of the region. The low dunes, forest and rocky point all bear the mark of the Ice Age glaciers that carved the peninsula and the bay.

The forests, dunes, beaches and shoreline of the peninsula’s tip host white-tailed deer, fox and a rich community of birds, with the Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay shores serving as a major migration corridor — the point concentrates migrating raptors, waterbirds and songbirds. The Cathead Bay unit’s quiet beach and the lighthouse point are excellent for birding, and the wet sand and dune grass host shorebirds.

Leelanau State Park protects a wild slice of Leelanau Peninsula ecology — rocky and sandy Lake Michigan shore, low dunes and northern forest at the meeting of bay and lake. The Cathead Bay unit’s undeveloped beach and dunes are fragile and ecologically valuable, and the point’s position as a migration corridor adds importance. Staying on trails protects the dune vegetation, and honoring closures protects nesting shorebirds.

Leelanau State Park, with the historic Grand Traverse Lighthouse at its heart, is a beloved scenic and maritime destination at the tip of the celebrated Leelanau Peninsula. The lighthouse museum, the stone-hunting beaches and the wild Cathead Bay shore draw history lovers, rock hounds, hikers and birders, anchoring the natural and maritime heritage of the peninsula’s northern point in the heart of Michigan’s wine-and-shore country.

Leelanau State Park lies at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula north of Northport in Leelanau County, reached via County Road 629. A Michigan Recreation Passport is required. The two units — the Grand Traverse Lighthouse and rustic campground at the point, and the Cathead Bay trails unit a few miles south — are reached separately; the lighthouse museum operates seasonally. Check the DNR and the lighthouse for current hours and access.

The DNR manages the park to protect its wild shore, dunes and forest, while the Grand Traverse Lighthouse is preserved as a museum. Visitors help by staying on trails to protect dune vegetation, honoring shorebird-nesting closures, taking only a reasonable number of stones within state limits, treating the historic lighthouse with care, and packing out litter. Protecting the undeveloped Cathead Bay shore preserves a rare wild stretch of the peninsula.

Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay can build dangerous waves and currents at the exposed point — heed conditions and supervise swimmers. The water is cold outside summer. The Cathead Bay trail to the beach is a forest hike; wear sturdy shoes and carry water. Watch footing on wet, slippery stones while hunting, and on the lighthouse-tower stairs. Protect against sun and insects, and respect the remote, wild setting at land’s end.

A Recreation Passport is required. The Grand Traverse Lighthouse museum operates seasonally with admission. Collecting stones is allowed within state limits — follow current DNR rules. Stay on trails to protect dune vegetation, and honor shorebird-nesting closures. Pets must be leashed. Camp only in the rustic designated sites at the lighthouse unit. Check the DNR and the lighthouse museum for current hours and rules.

The village of Northport and the wineries, orchards and villages of the Leelanau Peninsula lie south, with Lake Leelanau, Leland’s historic Fishtown, Sleeping Bear Dunes and Traverse City all within reach. The M-22 scenic drive, Grand Traverse Bay and the Lake Michigan shore surround the area, making the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula part of one of Michigan’s most scenic and beloved regions.

Tour the Grand Traverse Lighthouse museum and hunt for Petoskey stones on the rocky point, then hike the Cathead Bay trail to the quiet, wild Lake Michigan beach and dune overlook. Reserve the rustic lighthouse campsites early. Visit in the shoulder seasons for the best stone hunting and solitude. Pair a visit with the Leelanau wineries, Leland’s Fishtown and the M-22 drive.