Emmet County
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The following are Conservancy nature preserves or working forest reserves in Emmet County that do not include formal parking areas or trails. As Little Traverse Conservancy preserves, they remain open to the public for appropriate and respectful use, keeping in mind the land’s ecological protection. Working forest reserves are open to hunting and other activities as allowed through the Commercial Forestry Act Program.
3 acres, 2010
West Traverse Township. Neighbors pooled together to create this scenic preserve with more than a quarter mile of M-119 frontage.
40 acres, 1998
McKinley Township. Donated by Joey Arbaugh. This preserve is a wetland alder thicket and is adjacent to the Bryan Wildlife Preserve.
16 acres, 2017
Springvale Township. Donated by the Armistead Family to help protect Pickerel Lake Watershed.
40 acres, 2015
Readmond Township. Located on State Road. Renamed to honor LTC Executive Director Tom Bailey.
1.9 acres, 1985
Little Traverse Township. Donated by John and Jane Bartley.
3.5 acres, 1981
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Susan Bissell and Mr. and Mrs. John Fischer. There is a trail leading to an artisan well on this property.
23 acres, 2008
Little Traverse Township. First protected with a conservation easement in 2005, this property was donated in 2008 by Jack and Ceejay Heckenberg and is currently leased to Rising Hope and Harbor Springs Soccer.
16 acres, 2005 / 103 acres, 2012 / 6 acres, 2022 / 8 acres, 2023 / 18 acres, 2024
Littlefield Township. Located on the Pickerel-Crooked Lakes Channel. Local fundraising and a grant from the J.A. Woollam Foundation made it possible. Adjacent to the Black Hole and William J. Dickson Nature Preserves, totalling 253.75 acres.
32 acres, 2015
Maple River Township. Purchased with funding from J.A. Woollam Foundation and the Henry E. and Consuelo S. Wenger Foundation. Parking area off of US-31 between Brutus and Pellston. 1,500 feet frontage on Maple River.
80 acres, 1984 / 40 acres, 2000
McKinley Township. Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Garth P. Bryan, Mr. and Mrs. Garth M. Bryan. The Claes, Krapohl Family, and Roberts Nature Preserves are adjacent to this preserve.
3 acres, 1984
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Jack and Jackie Burley.
10 acres, 1999
McKinley Township. Donated by Bradley & Cynthia Claes. The Bryan Wildlife, Krapohl Family, and Roberts Nature Preserve is adjacent to this preserve.
6.5 acres, 2010
Little Traverse Township. Originally named in memory of Martha Cameron, but was changed when Michael passed in 2023. Adjoins Menonaqua Woods Nature Preserve. Lies along Little Traverse Wheelway and M-119 between Petoskey and Harbor Springs.
1.62 acres, 2021
Readmond Township. Donated by Jim Clarke and his family, this preserve is mostly northern hardwoods with 300 feet of M-119 frontage.
16 acres, 1992
Littlefield Township. Donated by Mr. Forrest Clements who left the property in his will. Includes views of Crooked Lake.
5 acres, 2014
Bliss Township. Donated by Mike, Emily, Joshua & Benjamin Compton in memory of Mike’s parents. Frontage on O’Neil Lake.
85 acres, 1980
Resort Township. Donated by Dorothy Covert in memory of her husband, Harold. Located near north arm of Walloon Lake.
8 acres, 2023
West Traverse Township. Including 840 feet on Five Mile Creek. Ian and Sally Bund, longtime LTC supporters, donated the acquisition amount and named the property in the Cumming’s honor.
4.5 acres, 1990
Cross Village Township. Donated by Mary Lois and William Cranmer. M-119 Scenic Corridor.
.1 acre, 2008
Cross Village Township. Donated by Thomas F. Graham, Jr. this property lies next to the Shurtleff Preserve and is the small piece of land on which the cross sits. The surrounding land is owned by Cross Village Township, which is not permitted to own a religious artifact.
25 acres, 2010
Bear Creek Township. Located adjacent to Bay View Woods, this preserve was donated by Martha Curtis and includes a mix of forest and field with views of Little Traverse Bay. Just outside of Petoskey city limits.
3 acres, 2001
Little Traverse Township. Adjacent to the James Nature Preserves and donated by Rick Cunningham.
4.4 acres, 2018
Cross Village Township. Donated by Rob and Kathy Deane, named after Rob and his mother. Critical dune habitat, northern hardwoods and conifers, and nearly 600 feet of frontage on Lake Michigan.
4.75 acres, 2015
Littlefield Township. Located on the Pickerel-Crooked Lakes Channel. Local fundraising and a grant from the J.A. Woollam Foundation made it possible. Adjacent to the Black Hole and Elbert Family Nature Preserves, totalling 253.75 acres.
40 acres, 2004
Littlefield Township. Purchased at a significant bargain price from Ken and Kathy Drayton. Located in the Crooked River watershed, this preserve is mostly wetlands.
20 acres, 2020
Pleasantview Township. Funds for the purchase of this preserve were donated by Karen and Michael Donnelly and the late Edward and Josephine Kusel.
8 acres, 2009
Readmond Township. Lying along the M-119 corridor just south of Good Hart. Donated in memory of Duncan C. Dobson Jr. by Lucy Dobson and his family.
3 acres, 1987
West Traverse Township. Donated by Herbert and Lorraine Edwards. Located on the bluff.
69 acres, 2014 / 22 acres, 2016 / 7 acres, 2018
Littlefield Township. Located on the Pickerel-Crooked Lakes Channel. Local fundraising and a grant from the J.A. Woollam Foundation made it possible. Adjacent to the Black Hole and William J. Dickson Nature Preserves, totalling 253.75 acres.
40 acres, 2015
Cross Village.
40 acres, 2015
Readmond Township. Located on Van Road. Renamed in 2022 to honor Ed Koza, LTC founder.
40 acres, 2015
Readmond Township. Adjacent to the Elmer Johnston Nature Preserve and Woody’s Woods Working Forest Reserve and across the road from Goodhart Farms Nature Preserve.
40 acres, 2015
Readmond Township. Johnston Road, across the road from Goodhart Farms Nature Preserve.
40 acres, 2015
Friendship Township. Located on Webb Road.
40 acres, 2015
Pleasantview Township. Stutsmanville Road.
40 acres, 2015
Friendship Township. Located on Birchwood Road.
35 acres, 1991
Cross Village Township. Donated by Sarah McPharlin. M-119 Scenic Corridor.
30 acres, 1973
Little Traverse Township. Mr. and Mrs. John Fischer made the first-ever land donation to LTC in 1973.
5 acres, 1980
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Margaret Fisk. Hardwood conifer swamp below the bluff.
27 acres, 1997 / 24 acres, 1998 / 9.5 acres, 2000 / 30 acres, 2001 / 6 acres, 2022
West Traverse Township. Donors include William and Cheryl VonValtier, Joyce Smith, and Bob and Virginia Horner.
10 acres, 2021
West Traverse Township. 275 feet of frontage on Five Mile Creek. Protected with donor funds for this project area. The sellers, Ken Garver and Susan Lightfoot, siblings, sold their property to LTC at a significant bargain sale and named the preserve in honor of their mother.
31 acres, 2022
Kate Granger contacted the Conservancy about selling the property at a bargain sale in order to honor her late husband, Brian Granger. Many private donations contributed to the purchase of this land that lies close to Crooked Lake and adjacent to the Northwestern State Trail.
2 acres, 2018
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Michael and Karen Gregory.
3 acres, 1983
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Max Goldman Jr. and Mr. Max Goldman III.
13 acres, 2013
Bear Creek Township. Donated by Robert and Mary Coykendall.
92 acres, 2017
Wawatam Township, Village of Mackinaw City. Donated by the Hathaway family. Close to town and several neighborhoods as well as Village of Mackinaw City lands. ADDRESS: 1057 West Central Avenue, Mackinaw City
40 acres, 1997
Little Traverse Township. Named in honor of Huffy Huffman.
149 acres, 2012
Littlefield Township. Donated by Scott and June Hymas. Located near Waldron Fen Nature Preserve.
60 acres, 2021
West Traverse Township. Named after LTC founder, board and committee member, David Irish. Historically used for agriculture.
1.8 acres, 1984 / 1.4 acres, 2004
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Dan and Ruby James, George and Lyda James, and Dannie Bea Hightower.
11 acres, 1997
Friendship Township. Donated by the John Family. M-119 Scenic Corridor.
20 acres, 2017
Maple River Township. Donated by Marceil Lasley in honor of her late father and the Kuebler family homestead. Mostly rolling open meadow, historically used as agricultural land.
80 acres, 2017
Springvale Township. Donated by Hank and Liesel Litzenburger Meijer in honor of her brother.
3 acres, 1985
Little Traverse Township. Donated by John and Helen Schachinger.
1 acres, 1980
Little Traverse Township. Donated by John and Helen Schachinger.
36 acres, 2011
Carp Lake Township. Purchased at a bargain price from cousins Jim Moss and Al Owens. Includes 1,500 feet of Paradise Lake frontage.
5 acres, 1982
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Fairbairn. Lowland cedar swamp.
3.5 acre, 2013
Little Traverse Township. Small preserve in memory of John Fischer. Funds were raised from variety of sources.
93 acres, 2022
Carp Lake Township. This preserve near Paradise (Carp) Lake was sold to LTC at a bargain sale from John Siegel.
58 acres, 2001
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Andrew Kalman
40 acres, 2002 / 13 acres, 2005 / 32 acres, 2011
Resort Township. Located near Bay Harbor, this project was funded through the US-31 Corridor Protection Program.
2 acres, 1993
Little Traverse Township. Donated by LeRoy and Elizabeth G. Kramer Trust.
34 acres, 2004
Little Traverse Township. Bargain sale from Betty Trippe. The property is a wetland with frontage on Powell Road.
2 acres, 2003
Springvale Township. Oden Island neighbors joined together to donate the funds for this preserve. Located on the causeway to Oden Island with 1,100 feet of Crooked Lake frontage.
14 acres, 1990
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Murray and Katherine MacDonald. Along M-119 between Petoskey and Harbor Springs.
10 acres, 1978
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Leo Desimpel and Mr. and Mrs. C. Donnelly.
102 acres, 1977 / 1.5, 2004
Little Traverse Township. Lies along M-119 and Beach Drive. Donated by the Menonaqua Corporation. This preserve is an important vegetated dune habitat.
30 acres, 2018
West Traverse Township. Funds to purchase this property were donated by Bill and Kim Morris in honor of their families. About one mile north of Harbor Springs on Hughston Road.
ADDRESS: 6842 Hughston Road, Harbor Springs
3 acres, 1980
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Jan and Dr. Marshall Morley.
38 acres, 1984
Bear Creek Township. Protected in conjunction with the Michigan chapter of The Nature Conservancy. This property is a peat producing Fen, this land is unique with its unusual diversity of species, including 18 orchids.
10 acres, 2011
Friendship Township. Donated by Marian and Todd Peterson. Marian is Todd’s mother.
10 acres, 2012
Readmond Township. Donated by Ellen Phelan Shapiro. Along M-119 corridor near Goodhart.
21 acres, 1989
Littlefield Township. Primarily wetland with 315 feet of frontage on US-31 and Crooked Lake between Oden and Alanson.
56 acres, 2017
Resort Township. Donated by Hank and Liesel Meijer. Parcels vary from open meadows to rolling hardwoods and slopes. 42 acres make the south preserve, and 14 acres make the north preserve.
20 acres, 1997
Little Traverse Township. The Offield Family Foundation funded this project. There are springs, streams, and scenic views on this property.
10 acres, 1998
McKinley Township. Donated by Steven and Jane Roberts. Adjacent to the Claes, Krapohl Family, and Bryan Wildlife Nature Preserves.
5 acres, 2020
Resort Township. Adjacent to Bubbling Springs Nature Preserve. Mark and Michelle Melvin funded this project.
6 acres, 1981
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Jerry and Martha Rockwell.
27 acres, 1986
Springvale Township. 2,000 feet frontage on Crooked Lake. Accessible only by boat. Predominantly swamp consisting of northern white cedar and balsam fir.
40 acres, 2021
McKinley Township. Mark Melvin funded this bargain sale purchase from Ed Harris, who named the preserve in honor of his mother and stepfather.
50 acres, 1998
Cross Village Township. Gift from Marion Ryan. Located along both sides of M-119 Scenic Corridor.
1 acre, 1978
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Robert and Carolyn Sandford.
.6 acre, 1991
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Arnold and Theresa Saviano.
5 acres, 2012
Readmond Township. Donated by Richard and Julie Scott. Located along M-119 Tunnel of Trees between Goodhart and Cross Village.
2.2 acres, 2004/ 1 acre, 2011
Bear Creek Township. Named in honor of long-time trustee and bequest benefactor Reg and Vivian Sharkey. Purchase on Bargain Sale for $125,093 from Jerry R and Linda D. Van Treese. Includes mouth of creek that drains Round Lake to Crooked Lake.
4 acres, 1991
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Frank and Catherine Shumway.
0.4 acres, 1977
Cross Village Township. Located on a bluff between M-119 and Lower Shore Drive in Cross Village next to Legs Inn. Provides magnificent views of Lake Michigan.
70 acres, 1986 / 80 acres, 2024
Center Township. Donated by Mrs. Marion Moffat. Located near Larks Lake, the property is managed for sustainable timber production.
6 acres, 1991 / 4 acres, 2004
Bear Creek Township. This property is a wetland with 900 feet of frontage on Round Lake.
28 acres, 2016 / .12 acre, 2019
Pleasantview Township. Donated by Kenyon Stebbins in memory of Sally.
ADDRESS: 290 Highland Pike Road, Harbor Springs
50 acres, 2000
Carp Lake Township. 3,000 feet of Paradise Lake (Carp Lake) frontage in northern Emmet County.
188 acres, 2021
Carp Lake Township. Mostly wetlands and lowlands with 1,000 feet of shoreline along Carp Lake. It is adjacent to the John and Julia Pachy Nature Preserve.
41 acres, 1994
Cross Village Township. Donated by the Walter Fisher Family. Includes a quarter mile frontage on Lake Michigan.
12 acres, 1987
West Traverse Township. Donated by Elizabeth Kennedy, this preserve lies adjacent to Thorne Swift Nature Preserve.
14 acres, 1973
Little Traverse Township. Donated by Jean and Janell Everest. Primarily a hemlock, yellow birch, and white cedar swamp.
66 acres, 2011
Carp Lake Township. It is located near Stony Point Nature Preserve and in the Paradise Lake (Carp Lake) watershed.
50 acres, 2005
West Traverse Township. Purchased with donations to the Harbor Springs Greenbelt Program and protected in honor of a long-time Conservancy board member.
80 acres, 2016
Readmond Township. Gift from Jim and Carol Wortley.
23 acres, 2021
Friendship Township. Jim and Margaret Anderson donated this property to LTC. I was named in recognition of the Anishinabek word for the area, with assistance from Eric Hemenway. The property is primarily wetland areas. Nearly 1,500 feet of Five Mile Creek flows through the property.
30 acres, 2018
West Traverse Township. Donated by Louise McAlpin. Adjacent to the Five Mile Creek Nature Preserve. Mostly rolling hardwoods with some forested wetlands along File Mile Creek.
