DNR acquires nearly 10K acres of land at tip of Keweenaw Peninsula for public access protection

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has acquired nearly 10,000 acres of forests, wetlands and culturally significant land in the Keweenaw Peninsula for protection.

According to the DNR, the property was previously held by The Nature Conservancy, and is known locally as the Keweenaw Point State Lands, which borders Fort Wilkins Historic State Park. The land will now be managed as part of the state park.

It features forested hills, abundant wildlife and freshwater streams, and is located at the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula.

This project represents a transformative moment for public land conservation and access to recreational treasures in Michigan, said DNR Director Scott Bowen. This landscape, shared by both geological history and human heritage, will now forever be in public ownership and accessible to Michigan residents, tribal nations, visitors and future generations to appreciate and enjoy.

According to the DNR, efforts to protect the lands began in 2021, when more than 32,000 acres known as the Keweenaw Heartlands were placed on the market.

The land had been under corporate ownership for more than a century, and officials were concerned about the sale. The state said it received hundreds of letters from residents, recreational groups and others, urging the state to protect public access.

A variety of people were worried about the possibility of land being fragmented, which would have significantly impacted the areas recreational trails, threatened the long-term reliability of public access, and had adverse effects on the local economy and the areas rich natural and cultural resources, said Helen Taylor, state director of The Nature Conservancy in Michigan. TNC saw an opportunity to assist with the land sale through a collaborative approach, ensuring many enduring community benefits.

The Nature Conservancy purchased the property in 2022 as a temporary owner and began working with the community and the DNR to secure funding. The DNR used $11.2 million in grant funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund and Land Exchange Facilitation Fund to purchase the property.

Then, a community engagement process began as part of the plan for the land transfer.

We worked to align with local priorities including conservation of natural and cultural resources, maintaining the land as a working forest, ensuring long-term public access, and supporting a resilient local economy, Taylor said.

In the future, the DNR will initiate a general management plan to help guide its future goals for the land. The DNR Forest Resources Division manages the adjacent 9,376-acre Baraga Forest Management Unit, and will continue to manage it for sustainable forestry, habitat management and more.

The DNR joined this effort because the project aligned directly with the departments mission and presented a rare opportunity to support a model for responding to large-scale private land divestment, Bowen said. Together, the community, TNC and the DNR shaped a collaborative and forward-looking plan that positioned todays acquisition for success.

There are still around 22,000 acres of the Keweenaw Heartlands that will remain in The Nature Conservancy's interim ownership while the organization and the DNR work to secure funding to transition it to public ownership.