GLEN ARBOR, MICH.
Northern Michigan's Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has received about $2 million in two federal grants for a second phase of a 27-mile hike-and-bike trail through the preserve, an official said Wednesday.
The federal parkland headquartered at Empire in the northwestern Lower Peninsula contains some of Lake Michigan's most striking coastline.
The grants come from the U.S. Transportation Department and cover a 3.7 mile section of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail from Glen Arbor to the historic Port Oneida site, said Deputy Superintendent Tom Ulrich.
Planning for the trail started about a decade ago, and design work took place in 2009, Ulrich said. He said construction starts next spring for the first four-mile stretch from the park's Dune Climb to Glen Arbor.
The trail is designed for walkers and people with non-motorized wheeled vehicles such as bikes, trikes and strollers.
The trail aims to meet both recreational and transportation needs, Ulrich said. The trail is expected to cut down on the amount of driving people need to do to get around the lakeshore, as well as add to the opportunities for outdoor activities, he said.
"It will provide a safe, non-motorized, multi-use transportation alternative connecting the Lakeshore's main visitor destinations with Glen Arbor and Empire," the lakeshore says on its website.
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Online:
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: http://www.nps.gov/slbe/index.htm
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