Michigan May Tear Down Thousands of Trees At Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes

The Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes is one of the most iconic areas in all of Michigan that truly captures the beauty. The state has to offer to its residents and visitors alike. Now,  even though I almost died on the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes, that was my fault, and even though I came close to touching death, I still find the sand to be truly beautiful.

Unfortunately, there is a proposal out which will vastly change the way the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes look. The proposal is to extend the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail by 4.25 miles which would connect the existing 22 miles of trail to the Good Harbor Trail. The problem with that is, as the Detroit Free Press reported, that would vastly change the way the trail has been accustomed to looking and thousands of trees would have to go:

Get our free mobile app

Some 7,300 trees would need to be removed to construct a planned, 4.25-mile extension of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail through vulnerable and protected ecosystems near Lake Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Leelanau County

Residents Upset Over Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes Trail Extention Proposal

As you can expect, people weren't too happy with the decision in the comment section:

Just typical of the National Park Service these days. They've lost their "preserve nature" mission and are gradually turning parks into recreational resorts.

Sleeping Bear support groups also agreed with this proposal:

We need to tell them to get back to their mission of protecting these precious natural resources for future generations, not caving into the loudest special interest groups that come along.

You can see more reactions from the public here.