North Manitou Island
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North Manitou Island is located in Lake Michigan, approximately 20 miles west of Leland, Michigan. It is nearly eight miles long and over four miles wide, with 20 miles of shoreline. Smaller South Manitou Island lies to its southwest.
The island is part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, and park passes and camping fees are required. The island can be accessed by a ferry service from Leland; private watercraft are permitted with limited docking.
Though it was the least populated of the Manitou islands, apple and cherry orchards were planted during its settlement period. Now uninhabited, the homesteads and buildings of the island's former settlers lie in varying states of ruin. The Manitou islands are surrounded by over 50 known shipwreck sites, which are popular diving spots.
The island has a system of trails (some of them the remnants of the island's unpaved roads), with leave-no-trace wilderness camping permitted throughout the island, and several designated camping sites near the ranger station at the dock. Filtered water is available at the ranger station, with limited natural inland water sources. There are two inland lakes suitable for fishing: Lake Manitou and Tamarack Lake. The island is flanked by dunes on its northwest and southwest sides.
Because of its distance from the mainland, a limited variety of mammals are found on the island: beavers, deer (introduced), coyotes, mice, chipmunks, and raccoons. Numerous songbirds, waterfowl, and various raptors can be seen; of particular note is the endangered Piping Plover, which nests here. There is an annual deer hunting season to limit the size of the population.
External links
- Manitou Island Transit (http://www.leelanau.com/manitou/)
- North Manitou Island, National Park (http://www.nps.gov/slbe/NMI.htm)