Two basins, one narrow channel, and a village built around the water. A field guide to northern Michigan’s quietly luxurious lake.
Lake Leelanau is really two lakes joined by a channel. The north basin plunges to 121 feet and runs deep and clear toward Leland and Lake Michigan. The south basin tops out at 62 feet and reaches down toward Cedar.
Where they meet, the water pinches into the Narrows and the village of Lake Leelanau gathers around it: a bridge on M-204, a tasting room on the water, a short walk to dinner. Early settlers called it Carp Lake. The name that stuck is often translated as “delight of life.”
Start at Boathouse Vineyards, a winery set right on the Narrows. Then walk the village to Northern Latitudes Distillery and Soul Squeeze Cellars. Drive out East Horn Road for 45 North and Aurora Cellars, or up to Blustone’s hilltop views.
Boathouse Vineyards: on the Narrows, village of Lake Leelanau
Northern Latitudes Distillery: village center, M-204
Blustone Vineyards: North Sylt Road
45 North & Aurora Cellars: East Horn Road
Tasting rooms keep seasonal hours, so check each website before you drive.
Dick’s Pour House has served the village since 1935 and is still family-run. Nittolo’s Seafood & Pizza offers patio dining, Fiddleheads is the lunch stop, and Pedaling Beans pours coffee for cyclists.
Dick’s Pour House: classic pub fare, open since 1935
Nittolo’s Seafood & Pizza: patio seating
Fiddleheads: lunch
Pedaling Beans: coffee, cyclist-friendly
Hours change with the season. Confirm before you go.
The paved Leelanau Trail runs about 17 miles between Traverse City and Suttons Bay, past orchards, vineyards, and forest. For a lake loop, MyNorth maps a flat 16-mile ride around North Lake Leelanau.
Leelanau Trail: paved and car-free, maintained by TART Trails
Trailheads: Cherry Bend Rd, Fouch Rd, Shady Lane, and 4th St in Suttons Bay
BATA bike-n-ride: summer bus service lets you ride one way and return by bus
Both basins have public boat launches, and the lake is navigable all the way to Cedar. The Michigan DNR describes a mixed fishery that includes lake trout, walleye, brown trout, and yellow perch. The Leland River carries the lake’s outflow to Lake Michigan.
Launches: public sites on the lake, including at the Narrows
Fishing: a Michigan fishing license is required
Rules: check current DNR regulations before you cast off
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore protects about 35 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline. Fishtown in Leland is roughly 20 minutes from Cedar, and Suttons Bay and Traverse City are both an easy drive.
Sleeping Bear Dunes: a park pass is required
Fishtown, Leland: about 20 minutes from Cedar
Traverse City: about 30 minutes from the lodge below
A two-bedroom, 1.5-bath lodge in Cedar with roughly 400 feet of private shoreline and a dock with mooring. Open-concept living faces the water, and Bel Lago Vineyard sits just across the road.
Lake Leelanau runs through the middle of the Leelanau Peninsula in northwest Lower Michigan. The village of Lake Leelanau sits on M-204 at the Narrows, the channel that joins the north and south basins.
No. The Leelanau Peninsula is the landmass between Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay. Lake Leelanau is the long inland lake that runs down its center.
The lake covers about 8,600 acres with roughly 41 miles of shoreline. The north basin reaches 121 feet at its deepest and the south basin reaches 62 feet.
Yes. Both basins have public launches, and the lake is navigable to Cedar. The Michigan DNR reports a mixed fishery that includes lake trout, walleye, brown trout, and yellow perch. A Michigan fishing license is required.
Leelanau Lakeshore Lodge in Cedar is about 30 minutes from Traverse City by car. Fishtown in Leland is roughly 20 minutes from Cedar.
Left Coast Vacation Rentals manages Leelanau Lakeshore Lodge, a two-bedroom lakefront home in Cedar that sleeps six. See the lodge or check availability.
Details verified October 2026. Tasting rooms, restaurants, and trail services keep seasonal hours, so confirm with each business before you go.
