Traveling east from Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, you leave behind the grand bluffs, enormous dunes, and well-marked attractions for the unknown. Like many U.P. roads, the sometimes paved, often gravel, H-58 winds through the trees, giving few clues as to what lies beyond the pines and hardwoods.

The land flattens out here—a far less dramatic landscape than the nearby Pictured Rocks area—so many visitors just pass on by. That’s good news for those looking for simple solitude, since these woods hide little-used hiking trails, scenic paddling rivers, undeveloped stretches of Lake Superior shoreline, and all kinds of secluded lakes and campsites known only by regulars.

Of course, if you continue along the meandering county roads to Whitefish Bay, you’ll find some of the U.P.’s more popular sights, including towering Tahquamenon Falls and the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum.

Getting There

The easiest way to navigate this part of the eastern Upper Peninsula is definitely via car. From Munising, head east on H-58, which leads to several county roads. To reach the eastern part of this shoreline, take M-123 from Newberry to Paradise.