US-MI-Sleeping+Bear+Dunes+NL+(Benzie+Co.)


 * =Birding in Michigan=

Benzie County
=Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (Benzie Co.)= US Platte River Ranger Station 5685 Lake Michigan Road Honor, MI 49640 [|Esch Road Beach web site] [|Platte Point web site] [|Platte Plains Area Lakes web site] [|Southern Boundary Area Lakes web site] [|Platte Plains Trail web site] [|Platte Plains Trail map] [|Old Indian Trail web site] [|Old Indian Trail map]

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Platte Point
Coordinates: 44.7321317, -86.1551285 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Bass Lake/Otter Lake
Coordinates: 44.7368143, -86.06353 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Esch Rd. at M-22
Coordinates: 44.7620602, -86.0491779 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Esch Rd. beach
Coordinates: 44.763215, -86.0750533 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Loon Lake
Coordinates: 44.7088909, -86.1259721 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Old Indian Trail
Coordinates: 44.7086212, -86.18783 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Otter Creek
Coordinates: 44.7574611, -86.072731 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL--Platte Plains Trails
Coordinates: 44.7218566, -86.0929871 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

Platte Plains Trail & Otter Creek
The Platte Plains Trail & Otter Creek area is a large area that provides birders with the opportunity to explore a wide variety of birding habitats and 14.7 miles of trail. This site is widely considered to hold the greatest variety of songbirds during migration periods. Birders may want to begin by traveling west on Esch Road from the intersection of Esch Road and M-22 for about 1.3 miles to the parking area at the end of the road. If birders walk a short distance back up the road, there is a two-track which crosses Otter Creek and a trailhead with Platte Plains Hiking Trail maps. Mixed woodlands, dunes, shoreline, shrub-scrub wetlands and other habitats are found in this area. Walking further up the two-track will provide good views of Otter Creek and other good birding spots. The trail map shows the extensive trail system in this area.

A good deal of time can be spent exploring the many good birding spots in the Platte Plains area. During late May, Otter Creek is the best place in the park to find migrating warblers. This is also a likely place to see Bald Eagles. In summer, look in the woods along the road for Scarlet Tanagers and Baltimore Orioles. Indigo Buntings nest near the end of Esch Road. Sandhill Cranes, herons, rails and waterfowl frequent the creek and wetlands.

From [|Sleeping Bear Birding Trail: Platte Plains & Otter Creek web site]
 * Directions:** Esch Rd. intersects M-22 approximately 3.9 miles south of Empire, MI. From Empire, turn right on Esch Rd. and proceed 1.3 miles to the parking area at the beach. Trail maps to the above areas are recommended and are generally available at the trailheads. Maps and other information are also available at the Park visitor center in Empire.

Platte Point
Located within Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore at the mouth of the Platte River, Platte Point is an excellent spot for observing waterfowl. The prime months for observing migrating ducks are April, October, and November, but huge concentrations of waterfowl are often found here throughout the winter. In the summer the beach serves as a nesting area for the endangered Piping Plover and thus is designated by National Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area (IBA). From April to August there will be rope fencing to protect the Piping Plover nesting area. Walking along the beach outside the rope fence is allowed. The river edges are also good places to bird.

This is the best place in the park to find shorebirds. During the summer look for Piping Plovers, Spotted Sandpipers, Killdeer, and Caspian Terns. During migration Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Sanderlings, Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers, Dunlins, Ruddy Turnstones, Semipalmated Plovers, and other shorebirds can be found. Lucky birders might find a Whimbrel, Willet, Baird’s Sandpiper, or other unusual species.

From [|Sleeping Bear Birding Trail: Platte River Point web site]
 * Directions:** From Frankfort, MI, travel north on M-22 for approximately 12 miles. Turn left on Lake Michigan Road and follow it to the end. From Empire, MI, travel south on M-22 for approximately 10 miles and turn right on Lake Michigan Road. The best birding is across the river. Cross the firm, sand bottomed river behind the restrooms (the water will be 2-2 ½ feet deep) and follow the path over the dune to the shore.

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