The Grand Traverse Bay Underwater Preserve is a preservation area that encompasses all of

Grand Traverse Bay Grand Traverse Bay is a deep bay of Lake Michigan formed by the Leelanau Peninsula in the northwestern Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The bay is long, wide, and up to deep in spots. It is further divided into two east and west arms by the Ol ...

, a bay of

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

, in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. It is in size and is located off

Traverse City, Michigan Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was ...

Description

The Grand Traverse Bay Great Lakes State Underwater Preserve protects bottomlands off Traverse City and the

Old Mission Peninsula Peninsula Township is a civil township of Grand Traverse County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the township population was 6,068, up from 5,433 at the 2010 census. The township is coterminous with the Old Mission Peninsu ...

of Grand Traverse County, the western shore of Antrim County bordering on Grand Traverse Bay's ''East Arm'', and the eastern shore of

Leelanau County Leelanau may refer to a number of articles relating to the region of the northwestern Lower Peninsula of Michigan: Geography Settlements * Leelanau County, Michigan * Leelanau Township, Michigan * Lake Leelanau, Michigan Landforms * Lak ...

bordering on Grand Traverse Bay's ''West Arm''. Wrecks located in the Grand Traverse Preserve include the schooner ''Metropolis'', which sank off

while carrying a cargo of lumber to Chicago in November 1886. Remains of the wreck were surveyed in 2009. In June 2008, the Grand Traverse Bay Underwater Preserve was listed as Michigan's 12th underwater preserve.

References

{{Protected Areas of Michigan Protected areas of Antrim County, Michigan Protected areas of Grand Traverse County, Michigan Protected areas of Leelanau County, Michigan Marine parks of Michigan