MAPLE CITY, Mich. – It’s going to take a lot of work to ecologically restore a beloved Up North ski resort left abandoned for 25 years – plus a legion of volunteers.

The Leelanau Conservancy this year completed a successful $8 million fundraising campaign to take over the defunct Sugar Loaf ski resort, about 30 miles northwest of Traverse City in Leelanau County. The nonprofit expects to take ownership of the 285-acre property in spring 2026 and “that’s when the fun will really begin,” an official said.

Tom Nelson, the nonprofit’s executive director, said the biggest environmental problems include human impacts and invasive species practically overrunning the site.

“It’s been 25 years of invasive plant species coming in and there’s a lot of ecological restoration that needs to happen,”

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