The remote Keweenaw Peninsula features ancient volcanic rocks, cascading streams, scenic Lake Superior coastlines and lush forests that harbor globally rare plants and wildlife. Since 1982, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has worked with partners to ensure the protection of this dynamic area. With the purchase of 32,000 acres in the Keweenaw, this legacy of conservation is poised to continue.

If you haven’t visited Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, it’s something to behold. Imagine endless forests, rich in biodiversity and teeming with wildlife. It’s here, nestled along the shore of Lake Superior, you’ll find the Keweenaw Peninsula.
One of the most unfragmented, climate-resilient forested and freshwater areas of the central United States, the Keweenaw provides important habitat for Michigan’s gray wolves, bobcats, black bears, pine martens and migratory songbirds. But this land isn’t just valuable to nature.
For thousands of years, the Keweenaw Peninsula has provided for people. It is part of the historic lands of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, who, for generations, have used it for hunting, fishing, gathering and ceremonial purposes. For the local community, nature-based recreation plays an essential role in both the economy and way of life.
We need you! Support our work in the Keweenaw.
Contact our development team to support our work in the peninsula.
Contact UsIn 2022, TNC completed a purchase of more than 32,000 acres in the Keweenaw—an area of land equivalent to more than 23,000 football fields lined neatly end to end. Protecting a piece of land so large and so very significant is not achieved alone. TNC is supporting the efforts of community leaders, the State of Michigan and the many people who love the Keweenaw to develop a lasting, community-based plan and model to care for these lands and waters for future generations.

The Keweenaw Peninsula is at the heart of one of the most beautiful and culturally significant landscapes in Michigan, rich with forests, wildlife, cascading rivers, lakes and wetlands.
As our state—and our planet—grapples with rapid climate change and biodiversity loss, we don’t just want to protect areas like the Keweenaw. We have to. Michigan is no stranger to species loss. Wolves nearly disappeared from the state in the 1970s, and other species have struggled to maintain a presence. By protecting the Keweenaw, we also preserve ecosystems, habitats and wildlife corridors that are necessary for biodiversity.
Protecting this area will also allow these forested lands to be managed for optimum carbon storage and climate resilience, all while providing a myriad of ways for people to connect with nature. These forests and fresh water have a big role to play in our future.

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Protecting the Peninsula
TNC’s work to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends is grounded in science and time-tested best practices. Land protection—through purchasing land, establishing conservation easements or assisting partners with their protection efforts—helps us achieve this mission. But land protection is just one strategy among many that TNC employs to benefit people and nature.
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Forest Protection
Protect and restore forests that provide habitat for diverse wildlife and songbirds and support healthy freshwater systems, from headwater wetlands, lakes and streams to the Great Lakes.
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Nature-Based Climate Solutions
Promote nature-based climate solutions that support healthy forests and sequester and store forest carbon, which is necessary to help meet Michigan’s emission reduction goals and achieve carbon neutrality.
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Partnership
Partner with the community on projects that balance the needs of people and nature. The Keweenaw Peninsula is fast becoming a regional and national outdoor recreation hub.
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Sustainable Forest Management
Demonstrate sustainable forest management practices on TNC’s working forest reserves in Michigan and share that expertise with Keweenaw partners.

Pathway to Conservation in the Keweenaw
TNC has been active in the Keweenaw Peninsula for decades. Our efforts are reflected in the three preserves we own and manage on the peninsula:
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Mary Macdonald Preserve at Horseshoe Harbor
The Mary Macdonald Preserve at Horseshoe Harbor, on the northern shore of the peninsula, is one of our most popular preserves with visitors. Visit the Preserve
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Helmut & Candis Stern Preserve at Mt. Baldy
The Helmut & Candis Stern Preserve at Mt. Baldy offers spectacular views of the surrounding forests and wetlands. Visit the Preserve
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Bete Grise Wetlands Preserve
The Bete Grise Wetlands Preserve in the Keweenaw Peninsula features a mile and a half of white sandy beach. Visit the Preserve
However, our impact goes far beyond our preserves. TNC has helped conserve approximately 15 miles of Lake Superior shoreline—practically the entire tip of the peninsula! This includes a collaboration with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources on a momentous project in the early 2000s, which protected more than 6,200 acres and five miles of the Montreal River. We continue to work with public and private partners on innovative protection solutions.
TNC's History in the Keweenaw Peninsula

Member Mary Macdonald helps TNC establish our 1st preserve in the Keweenaw, with a gift of 500 acres of land. This becomes the 1st piece of the Mary Macdonald Preserve, which TNC has since expanded to 1,200 acres.
Explore the Preserve
The Helmut & Candis Stern Preserve at Mt. Baldy is established in the Keweenaw, thanks to generous donations from the Sterns.
Explore the Preserve
TNC works with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and other partners to protect more than 6,200 acres at the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula—one of our largest protection projects in Michigan to date.

Ensuring that its stunning beach remains open to the public, TNC protects the 64-acre Bete Grise Wetlands Preserve as part of a much larger cooperative effort with the Houghton-Keweenaw Conservation District.
Explore the Preserve
Every year, birders record thousands of migrating raptors from the summit of Brockway Mountain. In 2013, TNC helps Eagle Harbor Township acquire 320 acres that include this migration site, keeping it open to the public.

TNC’s Mary Macdonald Preserve reaches its current size of approximately 1,200 acres, which includes four miles of Lake Superior shoreline.

TNC adds 200 acres to the eastern edge of the Helmut & Candis Stern Preserve that not only increase its acreage to its current 1,700+ acres, but also connect it to Michigan Audubon’s Lake Bailey Wildlife Sanctuary.
The Future of the Keweenaw
The Keweenaw Peninsula has globally significant opportunities for nature-based carbon solutions and land and water protection, all contributing to the health of one of the world’s largest freshwater systems, the Great Lakes. It is also a focal point for issues faced by forests around the world, and by the communities that depend on them—from habitat fragmentation to economic instability.
TNC hopes to continue to support the Keweenaw community as it builds a future around the sustainable use and management of the rivers, lakes and forests of this globally unique landscape and the outdoor recreation and environmental services (like carbon sequestration) that it offers.
TNC has been talking with local leaders and interest groups to listen and learn more about their goals and plans, and to provide support where we can. This includes exploring potential forest protection projects and partnerships that could continue to provide for local sustainable timber and recreational economies.
The Keweenaw Peninsula represents an opportunity for both learning and impact: the solutions we develop together here could be shared with other communities pursuing a resilient, nature-based future, across the Great Lakes and beyond.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is a "Conservancy"?
TNC’s land protection efforts are for conservation purposes that benefit the community. We protect Michigan’s lands and waters for people and nature, which includes public access to TNC-owned lands where feasible.
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What is a conservation easement?
Conservation easements are one way to protect land. These legal agreements restrict future development on a property and protect its conservation value in perpetuity. In exchange, the property owner may receive tax benefits. The easement holder—either a unit of government or a qualified conservation organization such as TNC—acquires certain rights and obligations to uphold the easement terms.
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What is the Keweenaw Forest Project?
Visit our frequently asked questions to learn about a unique opportunity to purchase approximately 32,600+ acres in the Keweenaw. For more information, sign up for email updates on the project.
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What is TNC's vision for the Keweenaw?
TNC’s land protection efforts are for conservation purposes that benefit the community. We protect Michigan’s lands and waters for people and nature, which includes public access to TNC-owned lands where feasible.
- Resilient, diverse and connected forests that contribute to climate solutions.
- A collaborative, community-centered approach to conservation.
- Thriving local economies based on healthy lands and waters.