It's always a little difficult to gaze at the stars in West Michigan because of light pollution and our above average cloud cover.  But if you really want to get a good clear view of the sky without much light pollution, you don't have to travel too far!

The State of Michigan has sanctioned seven locations in the Lower Peninsula as Dark Sky Parks.  These parks are our state's version of the "International Dark Sky Places Program", which is a conservation program recognizes and promotes excellent stewardship of the night sky.  We do have one official International Dark Sky site in Mackinaw City.  You can find more locations outside of the state here.

In the map below, we've included the one International Dark Sky Park, the six Michigan Dark Sky Parks, and three parks that also have skywatching facilities but are restricted use.

If you know of more locations that are good for stargazing, post them in the comments below!sta

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