Best of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

Mackinac Bridge [1]: Once you’ve crossed the “Mighty Mac,” make a quick stop in lovely Bridge View Park, where you can snap pictures of this engineering marvel, the third longest suspension bridge in the world. The eight-acre grounds include an observation building and several picnic pavilions.

Seul Choix Point Lighthouse [2]: Michigan’s lengthy coastline is dotted with dozens of historic lighthouses, some of which are open to the public. If you only have time to visit one in the U.P., head to Seul Choix Point southeast of Gulliver, where you’ll find a seasonal museum and a supposedly haunted lighthouse.

Grand Island National Recreation Area [3]: For those who aren’t ready to brave the isolation of Isle Royale National Park [4], Grand Island offers its own treasures, including sandy beaches, sandstone cliffs, historic lighthouses, and clear Lake Superior waters. Better yet, it’s only a half-mile from the mainland.

Miners Castle [5]: Less visited than the Lower Peninsula’s Sleeping Bear Dunes, lovely Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore [6] presents windswept beaches, gorgeous waterfalls, wooded trails, and tall sandstone cliffs, including the park’s most famous formation, which overlooks frigid Lake Superior.

Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum [7]: Housed within a historic building near the Whitefish Point Light Station — the oldest active lighthouse on Lake Superior — this is the only museum dedicated to the dangers of maritime transport on the Great Lakes. Exhibits include a bronze bell recovered from the famous Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck.

Tahquamenon Falls [8]: South of Whitefish Point lies a 52,000-acre, year-round state park that preserves the second largest waterfalls east of the Mississippi River. Visitors can take a scenic train ride and narrated riverboat cruise to these impressive cascades.

Soo Locks [9]: Situated in the St. Mary’s River, between Sault Ste. Marie and its Canadian sister city, this marvelous structure allows the passage of massive freighters between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes, the world’s largest waterway traffic system. Boat tours guide visitors along this international shoreline.

Isle Royale Boat Tours [10]: For those not ready to venture alone into Isle Royale National Park, the MV Sandy offers several boat tours that guide visitors around this isolated archipelago, taking in sights like Rock Harbor Lighthouse, Pine Mountain, and Lookout Louise.

Fort Wilkins Historic State Park [11]: Near the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula, you’ll find this historic recreation area, where visitors can stroll, bike, or ski along a four-mile nature trail, explore a restored 1844 military outpost, view one of the oldest lighthouses on Lake Superior, and watch costumed interpreters demonstrate the peninsula’s history.

Quincy Mine [12]: Now part of the Keweenaw National Historical Park [13], this former copper mine, once one of the world's richest, offers visitors a fascinating glimpse into a bygone era; informative tours include a visit to the on-site museum and towering shaft house, a guided stroll through the 1894 hoist building, and an expert-led tram ride to the underground mine.

Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park [14]: This 59,020-acre expanse is one of the few remaining large wilderness areas in the Midwest. Hikers, mountain bikers, anglers, canoeists, and cross-country skiers can explore towering trees, secluded lakes, wild rivers, and sights like the Lake of the Clouds Overlook.

Downhill Skiing [15]: The Lower Peninsula may contain several fantastic downhill ski resorts, but so does the U.P. In fact, the mountainous region around Ironwood boasts three solid choices, all of which offer lessons for first-timers.

Iron County Historical Museum [16]: Located at Caspian, not far from Iron River, the U.P.’s largest outdoor museum presents an assortment of exhibits, including wildlife art, early mining equipment, an 80-foot-long miniature logging camp, a former mining site, and several old log cabins.