Best time to visit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
July and August are the best balance at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: mild and dry for the park (average highs 75° to 75°F), with very busy crowds. July is busiest, with about 473,000 visitors. November is the quietest, with highs near 44°F. January and December see few or no visitors, so parts of the park may be closed: check nps.gov.
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Busy
- Very busy
- Few or no visits (may be closed)
- Best months
Month by month
- Station
- Northport 2W, MI USC00206007
- Lat / lon
- 45.13, -85.65
- Elevation
- 746 ft
- From park center
- 17.9 mi
- Normals
- 1991–2020
- Visits
- 2023–2025
| Field | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Julbest | Augbest | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High, °F | 29° | 30° | 38° | 50° | 62° | 71° | 75° | 75° | 69° | 56° | 44° | 34° | 53° |
| Low, °F | 18° | 17° | 23° | 33° | 43° | 53° | 59° | 59° | 52° | 42° | 33° | 24° | 38° |
| Precipitation, in | 2.3 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 2.3 | 32.9 |
| Snow, in | 26.3 | 19.0 | 12.6 | 5.9 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 6.2 | 21.2 | 91.4 |
| Daylight, h:mm | 9:07 | 10:20 | 11:46 | 13:26 | 14:50 | 15:36 | 15:18 | 14:05 | 12:28 | 10:52 | 9:28 | 8:46 | |
| Visitors, thousands | 13 | 16 | 21 | 30 | 88 | 274 | 473 | 408 | 156 | 113 | 17 | 14 | 1,623 |
| Crowds | Few or no visits | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet | Busy | Very busy | Very busy | Moderate | Quiet | Quiet | Few or no visits | |
| Weather | Cold | Cold | Cold | Cool | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Mild | Mild | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Cool | Cold |
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip., in | Snow, in | Daylight | Visitors | Crowds | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29° | 18° | 2.3 | 26.3 | 9:07 | 13,000 | Few or no visits | Cold |
| February | 30° | 17° | 1.5 | 19.0 | 10:20 | 16,000 | Quiet | Cold |
| March | 38° | 23° | 2.0 | 12.6 | 11:46 | 21,000 | Quiet | Cold |
| April | 50° | 33° | 2.9 | 5.9 | 13:26 | 30,000 | Quiet | Cool |
| May | 62° | 43° | 2.9 | 0.1 | 14:50 | 88,000 | Quiet | Mild, wet |
| June | 71° | 53° | 3.0 | 0 | 15:36 | 274,000 | Busy | Mild, wet |
| Julybest | 75° | 59° | 2.7 | 0 | 15:18 | 473,000 | Very busy | Mild |
| Augustbest | 75° | 59° | 2.7 | 0 | 14:05 | 408,000 | Very busy | Mild |
| September | 69° | 52° | 3.5 | 0 | 12:28 | 156,000 | Moderate | Mild, wet |
| October | 56° | 42° | 4.0 | 0.1 | 10:52 | 113,000 | Quiet | Mild, wet |
| November | 44° | 33° | 3.1 | 6.2 | 9:28 | 17,000 | Quiet | Cool |
| December | 34° | 24° | 2.3 | 21.2 | 8:46 | 14,000 | Few or no visits | Cold |
| Year | 53° | 38° | 32.9 | 91.4 | 1,623,000 | |||
Year: average high and low, total precipitation and snowfall, total visitors. T = trace (under 0.05 in). – = not measured at this station. Updated .
- Hottest July, average high 75°F
- Coldest nights February, average low 17°F
- Source NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information; National Park Service
- Visitors a year about 1,623,000 (2023–2025 average)
- State Michigan
Closures, reservations and alerts: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on nps.gov
Nearby
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