Click the links below to view a directory of businesses offering recreational opportunities.
With Grand Traverse Bay to the east, Lake Michigan to the west, and Big Glen, Little Glen and Lake Leelanau in the middle, water sports are very popular with visitors and residents alike. A Charter Fishing trip on Lake Michigan is a great way to spend a warm summer day. Rent a boat or jet ski, take a boat tour of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, take a boat ride out to South Manitou Island or ride a tall ship in Grand Traverse Bay. Learn about the environment of the Great Lakes on an educational cruise with the Inland Seas Education Association. Scuba dive Great Lakes Shipwrecks. The Peninsula boasts some of the most beautiful beaches in the United States with miles and miles of sandy shoreline for you to explore.
Outdoor enthusiasts also enjoy hiking and biking to take in the beautiful vistas that the Leelanau Peninsula has to offer. The Traverse Area Recreational and Transportation (TART) Trail features 15.5 miles of non-motorized trail that winds through the county from Traverse City on the south to Suttons Bay on the north. The route stretches through rolling hills, lush forests, orchards and meadows while passing by streams, lakes and ponds. Bicyclists are a common site on The Leelanau Peninsula's scenic roadways.
The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore offers 13 different trails through over 5000 acres of active dunes and 35 miles of Lake Michigan coastline. The Dunes Overlook on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive is 450 above the lake level offering spectacular views of Lake Michigan. On a clear day, you can see South Manitou Island and the freighters that travel the Great Lakes through the Manitou Passage. True adverturists run from the overlook down to the lakeshore, then climb back up again. Keep in mind that the climb back up is longer and steeper than it looks! The Dunes Climb located on M-104 just north of Empire is a favorite destination. When you reach the top of the first dune, look back to see a spectacular view of Big Glen and Little Glen Lakes along with the historical D.H. Day Farm. Click Here to download the 2009 Visitor's Guide to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
Golfers on the Leelanau Peninsula have many courses to choose from. All offer specacular vistas of the county. Click here for a directory of golf courses.
The Leelenau Peninsula is home to several beautiful horse farms that offer boarding, riding facilities and lessons in various disciplines of horse sports: English, Western, Hunter/Jumper and Dressage. Nearby Traverse City is home to the largest Horse Show event in Michigan, Horse Shows By The Bay, a four week competition featuring thousands of the nation’s best horses and riders competing in the International Olympic disciplines of show jumping and dressage and in nationally ranked events for the show hunter and equitation rider.
Hunting, Shooting Sports and Fishing are popular pastimes on the Leelanau Peninsula. The Cedar Rod and Gun Club is where sportsmen meet to target shoot and participate in skeet and trap leagues and take fly fishing classes. Hunter Safety classes are offered at the Club the weekend before Labor Day every year. Leelanau County has been a DNR Quality Deer Management area since 2004 which has greatly increased the quality of whitetail deer hunting in the county.
The fun continues into the winter with downhill and cross-country skiing, sledding and snow tubing.
