Skip to content
Byway
River Road Scenic BywayAll lookouts
Lookout · River Road Scenic Byway

Foote Pond Overlook

VerifiedOpenStreetMap + U.S. Forest Service
Looking north-west from Foote Pond Overlook. Terrain and imagery at true elevation.
Overview · Assembled from verified data

Foote Pond Overlook sits on the River Road Scenic Byway at 780 feet elevation, on high sand bluffs above Foote Pond. The terrain drops 147 feet within 600 meters of the overlook, and the view faces 300 degrees, oriented toward sunset rather than straight west. Eagles nesting nearby may be visible from the site. Access is by a paved road leading to a parking lot and a barrier-free wood deck, though the road and lot are too narrow for buses or motor homes. East Tawas lies 12.0 miles to the south, with Skidway Lake 31.7 miles southwest and Standish 39.1 miles southwest. Sunset times shift across the year, from 21:23 at the June solstice to 16:58 at the December solstice, with sunrise ranging from 05:50 in June to 08:08 in December. The previous stop along the byway is Westgate Scenic Overlook.

Access
0.5 mi detour
Elevation
780 ft
View
Northwest · 300°
Light
Best at sunset
Relief
147 ft drop
When to look · Sun at this latitude

Light

This overlook faces sunset — 30° off square to it.

DateSunriseSunsetGolden hour
March equinox07:3819:4719:08
June solstice05:5021:2320:38
September equinox07:2219:3318:55
December solstice08:0816:5816:10

Local time (America/Detroit). Computed for this exact position.

Getting there · Position and access

Where it is

  • East Tawas12.0 mi south
  • Skidway Lake31.7 mi southwest
  • Standish39.1 mi southwest
← Before it: Westgate Scenic Overlook
Loading map…
Private beta · Free to join

Take the scenic way to Foote Pond Overlook.

Byway plans around your taste, verified places, real weather and opening hours — then opens every leg in Google Maps with one tap.

Private beta · Free to join · No card · Invite when a spot opens

From the source · Verbatim

Foote Pond Overlook · U.S. Forest Service

Foote Pond Overlook provides a spectacular view from the high sand bluffs overlooking Foote Pond. Visitors may see the eagles that nest nearby. The Overlook has a paved access read and parking and barrier-free access to a wood deck. The access road and parking lot are too tight for busses or motor homes to negotiate.

Brochure with map:

River Road National Scenic Byway (pdf) - this brochure shows River Road, the Au Sable River and Lumberman's MonumentHighbanks River Trail Map (coming soon)Eagle Run Trail Map (coming soon)The brochure is set to print on 11 x 17 paper, landscape (wide) orientation. To print on 8 1/2 x 11 paper set the print area to "shrink to printable area", this will make the text on the page smaller. The trail maps are set to printon 8.5x11 paper.

Flickr Photo Albums:

Au Sable River - Alcona Dam to Lake HuronVisitor Center and Grounds ProgramsMonument CampgroundRiver Road National Scenic BywayIargo SpringsHighbanks River TrailEagle Run Trail

Read it at U.S. Forest Service →
Common questions

How high is Foote Pond Overlook?

Foote Pond Overlook sits at about 780 feet (238 m).

Is Foote Pond Overlook better at sunrise or sunset?

Sunset. The land falls away from Foote Pond Overlook toward the sunset, so at sunrise the light is behind you. Exact times shift through the year; the page shows the current window.

What is the nearest town to Foote Pond Overlook?

East Tawas, 12 miles S of Foote Pond Overlook.

Drive to Foote Pond Overlook with Byway

Byway plans the scenic way there — real places along River Road Scenic Byway, real weather, zero hallucinations — and hands the turns to the navigation you already use.

Plan a drive to this lookout →Plan this with Byway AI
On these byways · Drive past it

Byways with this lookout

Community · From people who stood here

Locals make it Verified.

Foote Pond Overlook — confirmed, rated, and photographed by people who actually pulled over. A local confirmation is what upgrades a lookout from Discovered to Verified. Zero hallucinations.

Confirmed by locals

No local confirmations yet. Stood here? Yours is the one that upgrades this lookout to Verified.

Ratings

No ratings yet. Stood at this lookout? Be the first to rate it.

No written reviews yet.

Field notes

No field notes yet. Know the gate hours or the best pull-in? Leave the note you wish you'd had.

Photos

No photos yet.

Sign in to confirm this lookout, rate it, add photos, and leave field notes.

Nearby · Same byway

More lookouts on River Road Scenic Byway

Nearby · The Atlas

Named places near this lookout