Outdoor Activities in Michigan's Upper Peninsula
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is a popular destination due to its natural wonders and proximity to Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and Lake Superior. Cross the Mackinac Bridge and enter the Lower Peninsula. Activities in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula provide an abundance of historic buildings, museums, and natural wonders. Explore our top 15 Upper Peninsula attractions you should visit during a trip to Michigan.
Bete Grise Bay
This bay provides calmer waters than the rest of Lake Superior, which makes it the perfect spot for kayaking, swimming, and water sports. White sand beaches line the bay. You’ll find many cabins and lodges in the area, and there are fishing charters if you want to go out into the lake for a day of fishing.
Bond Falls
The Upper Peninsula Power Company allows access to the land around Bond Falls, a 50-foot waterfall on the Ontonagon River. View the falls from six different viewing platforms on an accessible boardwalk and bring a picnic. Dogs are allowed provided you keep them on a leash and clean up after them. Bond Falls are generally open from the middle of May through the middle of October. It’s just eight miles from Northern Waters Casino Resort.
Drummond Island
Drummond Island is the farthest eastern point in the Upper Peninsula. It’s home to the Fossil Ledges and the Steps at Marble Head. Reach it by ferry from De Tour Village. The Fossil Ledges are a bit challenging to get to, an ATV is ideal. If you can make the trip, the fossilized remains of saltwater coral and waters of Lake Huron are worth it. You’ll also want to make it to the Steps at Marble Head and the Shale Beach are other attractions that are worth seeing if you have the right vehicle to make it out there.
Fayette Historic State Park
You will pay an entry fee to access this state park, but it’s a must-see if you’re in the area. The park features a restored ghost town, now a museum showcasing the former town’s iron smelting industry. Beaches line the peninsula.
Iron Ore Heritage Trail
This 47-mile trail is an outdoor museum following abandoned rail corridors that were used to bring wood to the forges and furnaces for the area’s former iron ore industry. for anyone who wants to bike, walk, ski, or use a snowmobile or ATV to explore it. The formerly abandoned buildings are being reimagined to provide places to stop along the way. Among them, find:
- Blackrocks Brewery
- Carp River Kiln
- Cliffs Shaft Mine Museum
- Michigan Iron Industry Museum
Isle Royale National Park
Isle Royale National Park is an island in the northern waters of Lake Superior. It’s rustic and requires a seaplane or ferry to reach it. Accommodations on the islands include cabin rentals or tent sites. You won’t find a lot of services here, but there are plenty of nature trails and lighthouses to explore.
Kitch-iti-kipi
Kitch-iti-kipi is a 40-foot-deep freshwater spring in the heart of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The water temperature remains 45 F year-round and the flow rate is 10,000 gallons per minute from the limestone floor. Once you’re at the spring, a self-cranked raft brings you out to view the crystal-clear water.
Lake of the Clouds
Lake of the Clouds is a lake in Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. The lake is easy to access from Big Carp River Trail or the Escarpment Trail. Once there, catch-and-release fishing and light watercraft like kayaks are allowed.
Mackinac Island
Ferry service makes it easy to get out to Mackinac Island. It’s famous for the ban on cars. If you’re on Mackinac, you’re on foot, bike, or using a horse-drawn carriage to get around. It's a must-see with plenty of shops, restaurants, historic attractions, and nature trails.
Marquette Island
You must have your own boat to access Marquette Island. In the winter, if the ice is thick enough, you can walk out. The island’s nature preserves are a main draw to the area. The largest is the Aldo Leopold Preserve at 1,683 acres.
Museum of Ojibwa Culture
The Ojibwa casinos are not the only draw to the area. Visit the Museum of Ojibwa Culture in St. Ignace to explore the tribe’s culture, arts, and lifestyle. While you’re there, handmade items like baskets, jewelry, and sculptures are available for purchase.
Pasty Fest
Each August, the former copper mining town of Calumet hosts the annual Pasty Fest in the downtown. If you’re not familiar with a pasty, it’s a meat pie that British miners would carry with them into the mines for a hearty, easy-to-eat lunch. A filling of meat, potatoes, carrots, turnips, celery, and onions is mixed with gravy and wrapped in a buttery shortcrust pastry.
The Pasty Fest showcases all of the different takes that you can create from the original recipe. Plus, there’s a car show, vendors, and art contest. There’s also a pasty eating contest and you get to judge the different pasty recipes from area cooks to determine who is the champion baker.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Pictured Rocks get their name from the minerals that seep into the rocks and create what looks like a painted cliffside. They’re best viewed from the water, but plenty of boat tours are available. The park is also home to multiple waterfalls, hiking trails, and beaches.
Soo Locks
To reach Lake Superior from Lake Huron, or vice versa, Soo Locks were created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. For ships to get from one lake to the other, the water levels in the locks are lowered or raised to help ships move through the channel. Visitors can stand on the platform and watch this process up close.
Tahquamenon Falls State Park
Spanning almost 50,000 acres, there is a lot to see in Tahquamenon Falls State Park. There are just under 40 miles of nature trails where you might spot animals like bald eagles, foxes, otters, and moose. The waterfall’s Upper and Lower falls are viewed by boat or areas along the trails.