It's impossible to look at this picture and not smile. It was recently voted "Most Beautiful Place in America" by Good Morning America on ABC. And can you blame them?
According to an Anishinaabek Native American Legend, the Sleeping Bear Dunes were formed thanks to the Great Spirit of Manitou. Long ago in the land that is now Wisconsin, a mother bear and her two cubs were forced into Lake Michigan by a furious forest fire. They swam and swam, but soon the cubs tired and lagged far behind. Mother bear finally reached the opposite shore and climbed to the top of a bluff to watch and wait for her cubs. But they drowned on the way. Today, "Sleeping Bear," a solitary dune in Michigan overlooking Lake Michigan, marks the spot where mother bear waited. Her lost cubs are the two Manitou Islands, North and South Manitou.
I love this place. It's great visiting during anytime of the year. I don't get to visit this area that often, which is funny since I live in the area. But when I do visit I cherish every moment because it's such a gorgeous place to visit that makes you feel like you're on top of the world.