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Grand Traverse Bay is located off Lake Michigan in Northern Michigan. The bay is 32Â miles long, 10 miles (wide, and up to 600Â feet deep in spots. It is divided into two arms by the Old Mission Peninsula. Traverse City is situated at the south end of the bay where the Boardman River empties into the west arm. Cherry orchards line the bay region, giving rise to Traverse City's claim to be the Cherry Capital of the World. Northport Bay, located at the northwest corner of Grand Traverse Bay is about 10 miles long and 4Â miles wide. The Grand Traverse Bay includes several important smaller bays: Northport Bay, Suttons Bay, Omena Bay, Bowers Harbor, and Old Mission Bay. Northport Bay open to the east, except inside the arms at each end, with the Leelanau Peninsula on the West side. There are several shoals in Northport Bay marked by buoys. Bellows Island, a low gravel island covered by shrubs and located near the middle of Northport Bay, is owned by the Nature Conservancy; it is primarily known as a bird rookery, and is sometimes locally called Gull Island.
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