4th of July Road Trip - Day 2: Isle Royale National Park

On Day 2, we took a ferry out to Isle Royale National Park, which is an island within Lake Superior. The park is technically in Michigan but the shortest ferry ride comes from MN. We only had a day trip planned. Most visitors come for 3-4 days to explore this remote and beautiful island. We took a chilly ride aboard the Sea Hunter to and from the Island - an experience that is always remembered better in hindsight than in the moment.




On route to the island, we drove by the Witch Tree, a 300+ year old tree growing growing out of bare rock on the shoreline. It is a small, gnarled, conifer that is held sacred by the Ojibwe, who traditionally leave offerings to ensure a safe journey on Lake Superior. Due to its sacred nature and vandalism problems in the past, the tree is off limits to visitors unless accompanied by a tribe member.



Our time on the island was limited to about 3 hours. To make the most of our trip, we hiked to Grace Creek Overlook on the Feldtmann Lake Trail. It follows the harbor to the top of a ridge where we enjoyed our smoked fish and local cheese lunch. We then hiked back down and explored the moose "exclosure", a section of land that has been enclosed to study the impact of moose on the local vegetation. There are about 1,250 moose on the island. Unfortunately, we didn't see any on our trip.



On route back to Grand Portage, we drove past the Rock of Ages lighthouse, one of four lighthouses on the island. Despite the four light houses, there have been more than 25 shipwrecks near and around the island. The waters were rough on the way home. and all of us that were sitting on the back got quite wet. I love the rainbow of wet rain coats in this picture.