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The Headlands International Dark Sky Park is a county park in the U.S. state of Michigan. The park preserves over of undeveloped 
It is located in, and is operated by, Emmet County in Northern Michigan. The nearest town is Mackinaw City, Michigan. The park contains woodlands and many species of rare and endangered plant life. Park fauna include the black bear, whitetail deer, 
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 ...
shoreline south and west of McGulpin Point Light
McGulpin Point Light was constructed as a navigational aid through the Straits of Mackinac. The light began operation in 1869, making it one of the oldest surviving lighthouses in the Straits. Only in operation until 1906, the light is located ...
in the Straits of Mackinac
The Straits of Mackinac ( ; french: Détroit de Mackinac) are the short waterways between the U.S. state of Michigan's Upper and Lower Peninsulas, traversed by the Mackinac Bridge. The main strait is wide with a maximum depth of , and connects ...
.
It is located in, and is operated by, Emmet County in Northern Michigan. The nearest town is Mackinaw City, Michigan. The park contains woodlands and many species of rare and endangered plant life. Park fauna include the black bear, whitetail deer, coyote
The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...
s, bald eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
s, osprey, and the wild turkey.
Marked trails are provided for hiking, photography, bicycling and cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...
. In May 2011, Headlands Park was awarded International Dark Sky Park designation by the International Dark-Sky Association
The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) is a United States-based non-profit organization incorporated in 1988 by founders David Crawford, a professional astronomer, and Tim Hunter, a physician/amateur astronomer. The mission of the IDA is " ...
. It was the 6th such park in the United States, and the 9th such park worldwide, to be awarded this designation. Park signage celebrates astronomy and the heritage of the Native Americans of Northern Michigan.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Headlands, The Protected areas of Emmet County, Michigan