Summer Road Trip 2017: Empire Bluff Trail + Another Beach

I read about the Empire Bluff Trail the night before so after having breakfast in the town of Glen Arbor (another must-see in this area), we headed back to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in search of the trail head.  Do not miss this trail if you're ever Up North.  It's a moderately steep trail with a stunning pay off at the end. At the top there are benches where you can sit and enjoy the air and views.  We lingered at the top for a long time chatting and hanging out together. Once again photos don't do it justice; I took lots of short videos to remind myself of the beauty we experienced.

We spent the afternoon at a beach I had heard about.  People started leaving as it got later and pretty soon we had the place to ourselves.  In the evening we went to dinner in downtown Traverse City

Our final morning we took it slow - packing up and enjoying a leisurely breakfast, another cup of coffee. While playing outside the house, the boys spotted a chubby chipmunk in a tree right near our car. They dragged a dining chair outside to try and get a better view.  They also poured some popcorn into the hole in the tree to help the chipmunk prep for winter (a la Chip N Dale). It was a nice way to say goodbye to a most enjoyable week.