Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary

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Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, 500 West Fletcher Street, Alpena, MI.

The Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is a non-profit organization whose mission is dedicated to protecting the Great Lakes and preserving their rich maritime history.

Thunder Bay’s sanctuary waters and shorelines offer some of the most beautiful views around. That’s why we love inviting...
10/15/2026

Thunder Bay’s sanctuary waters and shorelines offer some of the most beautiful views around. That’s why we love inviting you to —and why we’re so excited to feature work from local photographers right in The Sanctuary Store!

Stop by to explore breathtaking aerial shipwreck prints from Bryan Dort (Photic.Zone) alongside striking photos of local vessels and Alpena sights by Spencer Grotto. They make the perfect statement piece for any empty wall.

📍 Find us: Inside the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center. Every purchase supports community outreach and education through the Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

Say "hey!" to the current NOAA Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council 👋.Last night's meeting kicked off ...
10/14/2026

Say "hey!" to the current NOAA Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council 👋.

Last night's meeting kicked off with a welcome to new members before diving into a packed agenda covering upcoming events, education recaps and updates, multibeam sonar mapping stats, and support for scientific work on reconstructed reefs in the sanctuary.

A sanctuary advisory council is a community-based advisory group consisting of representatives from various user groups, government agencies, and the public at large. The role of the council is to provide advice to the sanctuary superintendent on the designation and/or operation of a national marine sanctuary.

PS - the next upcoming event is the Haunted Museum on Friday, October 23 - join us if you dare 🎃👻

https://thunderbayfriends.org/event/haunted-museum-2/

Dive into the sanctuary with virtual reality (VR)!It's pretty fun...and you can try it out yourself at Besser Museum For...
10/02/2026

Dive into the sanctuary with virtual reality (VR)!
It's pretty fun...and you can try it out yourself at Besser Museum For Northeast Michigan's Fall Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 3 from 12pm to 4pm.

Look for the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary booth to learn more about the 4,300 square miles of Lake Huron designated to protect historic shipwrecks just off our shoreline. There are multiple ways to experience them....VR happens to be one!

09/30/2026

AND THE WINNER IS… 🥁

Actually, you’ll have to hit play on the video for that exciting news! But we can tell you that we are stoked about the amazing participation in this raffle for a handmade 17-foot wooden kayak. 🚣‍♂️✨

All proceeds support shoreline community outreach and education through programming made possible by Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Heritage Coast Sailing and Rowing Inc, Community Boat Builders of Tawas.

Please help us congratulate our winner in the comments, and feel free to drop your favorite local kayak spot! 🌊👇

Science partnerships make the world go round, and a fantastic one is happening right on the shores of Thunder Bay! 🌊🔬Sho...
09/25/2026

Science partnerships make the world go round, and a fantastic one is happening right on the shores of Thunder Bay! 🌊🔬

Shortly before their first expedition visit in 2022, luxury cruise brand Viking established a science partnership with NOAA Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (TBNMS). Now, several years into a collaboration that expands research and monitoring across the Great Lakes, local educators are plugging in too.

During this Viking expedition season, local teachers and administrators connected with the onboard Viking science team, building personal relationships and finding new ways to bring real-world research into the classroom. Plus, the Viking crew love meeting with local students and robotics teams, often traveling to their schools when in port.

To top it all off - and bring us to the photos you see shared here - science equipment donated directly from Viking Expedition ships was shared with Alpena Public Schools earlier this week!

Coming together truly helps us all go further. 💡✨

Congratulations to Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary’s Visitor Experience Coordinator & Events Manager, Erin Pilarsk...
09/24/2026

Congratulations to Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary’s Visitor Experience Coordinator & Events Manager, Erin Pilarski, on being named a 2026 Colleague Champion Award recipient! 🏆✨

Erin was independently nominated for this Michigan Museums Association award by two of her teammates, and we couldn’t agree more that she deserves this recognition!

The MMA presents the Colleague Champion Awards to honor museum professionals who make outstanding contributions across the state. Erin will officially accept her award at this year’s MMA conference in Oakland County, but that’s not all!

She’ll also be taking the stage as a presenter, sharing insight on how the sanctuary is building meaningful and impactful partnerships with veteran and military organizations.

Join us in wishing her a huge congratulations! 🎉

09/17/2026

What. A. Day. 🌊🎥🔬

The first-ever livestream from Middle Island Sinkhole took place on Wednesday, September 16, and it was amazing! If you couldn't watch live, don't worry—you can catch the full recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/PNLrp40j06I?si=lnHGjw4A9GOCIfm-

Freshwater filmmakers and explorers Zach Melnick and Yvonne Drebert teamed up with Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Great Lakes Now for an incredible underwater event. Together, they took viewers 80 feet below the surface of Lake Huron and into a natural time capsule. Using a high-tech remotely operated vehicle (ROV), the team descended into the sinkhole, following advanced divers as they collected samples from the remarkable microbial mats along the lake floor.

While Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is best known for its pristine, well-preserved shipwrecks, sites like the Middle Island Sinkhole have driven significant scientific research since the sanctuary was designated 26 years ago.

Did you tune in? What did you think?
Have you ever visited or explored Middle Island Sinkhole?

Address

500 West Fletcher Street
Alpena, MI
49707

Telephone

+19898846200

Website

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