Gallery: Visitors Explore North Point Nature Preserve
Huron Pines hosted its first North Point Exploration Day on Friday, July 12 and welcomed 30 guests to walk along the dunes, venture to the edge of a coastal fen or kick back to enjoy the serene nature preserve.
Located east of Alpena, North Point Nature Preserve is home to 1,384 acres of forested wetlands, four miles of undeveloped shoreline and rare ecosystems found only along the Great Lakes. Since it was transferred to Huron Pines in 2023 by The Nature Conservancy, our organization has been expanding opportunities for more people to explore its rare ecosystems and unique geology so they can better understand and appreciate the importance of having protected lands in Northern Michigan.
Visitors saw dozens of Pitcher’s thistles, a federally threatened native species flowering along the dunes. Families searched for puddingstones and fossilized corals while stepping over the occasional piece of century-old shipwreck wood, laying like weathered dinosaur bones along the shore.
We appreciate everyone who joined us for this inaugural Exploration Day and invite you to our next one scheduled for Oct. 12 (registration opens soon). You can also join us for a guided Walk & Talk Aug. 1 to learn more about dune ecosystems, the threats they face and how you can help protect them.
This event was supported by the Lake Huron Forever initiative, developed in 2019 by shoreline community foundations and conservation partners from the United States and Canada to advance water quality protection and sustainable communities on both sides of the lake. Facilitated by Huron Pines, the initiative supports community efforts to design and implement on-the-ground projects that strengthen the health of residents and natural resources.
See more sights from the day in our gallery below.
