Empire Bluff Trail - Sleeping Bear Dunes Hiking

Empire Bluff Trail

The Empire Bluff Trail in Sleeping Bear Dune National Lakeshore.

The trail to the top of the Empire Bluffs is probably the most popular short hike in lower Michigan. If are planning a visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes this 1.5 mile out and back hike should be on your must do list. It is a fairly easy hike on a wide path to a boardwalk along the bluffs that rise up to 400 feet above Lake Michigan. Looking to the north the shore bends away in a perfect sand arch that ends with the Sleeping Bear Dune. The end of the dune then points out to South Manitou Island floating on the deep blue water on the horizon. At the end of the boardwalk are a few benches where you can rest and take in the view before heading back to your car.

This trail does have a couple steeper climbs, but is overall a good kid friendly hike. The flat gravel path that was put in here is smooth enough that it can be walked in almost any footwear.

The pictures below are a combination of several visits in different seasons..

The Empire Bluff trailhead has a small gravel parking area that often fills up. On a nice summer day cars will be overflowing on to the shoulder of the road by mid morning. There is also a trail map and pit toilet here.

Heading out on the wide path through the Beech and Maple forest.

At about the 1/2 mile mark there is a bench and a cut in the trees where you get your first view of the dunes and South Bar Lake. Take a quick photo and continue on as the views only get better from here.

Climbing up one of the steep sections of trail on the way to the top of the bluff. If the trail is wet you will want to be careful here because the erosion barriers will be slippery.

Reese near the top of the dunes. It is about 3/4 of a mile from the parking lot to the overlook.

The start of the boardwalk.

photo of the boardwalk heading out on to the empire bluff

Breaking out of the woods on to the boardwalk along the top of the Empire Bluffs.

A busy morning at the Empire Bluff overlook.

The girls resting and taking in the view with Platte Bay in background.

panoramic photo from the empire bluff trail

A panoramic of the view.

Another shot from a cloudy fall day up on the dune bluffs.

The girls climbing on the dunes above the overlook benches for an even better view.

I had to go back into the archive for this one.

For years there was an iconic ghost tree standing guard at the end of the Empire Bluff trail.

trears over the falling tree on empire bluff

Unfortunately when we walked out to the top of the bluff in the spring of 2009 we found that our kids favorite tree had fallen since our last visit. Regan was so sad that the "Fork Tree" was gone that she had to fight back the tears. We would later find out from the Ranger at the visitor center that it was suspected that this was a case of vandalism that happened in August 2008.

Here is a link to more on this story on Flickr >>

reid heading back on the empire bluff trail

After soaking in one of the best views in Michigan for a while it was time to head back down to the trailhead.

The Empire Bluff trail map. (If the map does not show above click here)

Directions to the Empire Bluff Trailhead >>

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For more on this hike see :

More on our MI Adventure Guidebook Page >>

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