This trip was a dream. I had a bad experience camping over the 4th of July, so I kind of dreaded doing another state park campground trip, but this was such an excellent and chill time. I definitely got that "OMG NATURE" feeling kayaking, fishing and seeing Eagles. Clear Lake is now at the top of my list of State Park campgrounds to visit again.
I wonder if there are other spots with a similar vibe? 🤔
I'm looking at camping at a remote site, but I've never camped somewhere that required hiking in, and I don't really have the lightweight gear for a long hike.
Some of the Craig Backcountry sites look like they might be a compromise between driving in and hiking in but it's kind of hard to tell.
Option 1 (red circle): sites 10, 11 and 22. The description says, "This is a remote site, accessible by hiking in. From the Main Trailhead, it is approximately 500 yards one-way." 500 yards sounds doable, even with gear. I'm wondering what the trail looks like and if I could even pull a foldable wagon to the site. Does anyone know?
Option 2 (green circle): sites 17, 18, 19. The description says, "This is a remote site, accessible by driving in. From US-41, it is approximately 5.5 miles one-way." Driving in sounds good, but what kind of road is it? Could a standard sedan make it, or would you need 4WD?
Any insight to these sites, or suggestions for similar sites would be appreciated!
Our trip was at the end of July (right after the smoke cleared). We went to: Tahquamenon, Munising, Marquette, Ontonagon, and Escanaba. Ended up clocking just over 1,200 miles on the trip!
10/10 would recommend doing a trip like this.
Edit: Couple people asking for the itinerary…
Day 1:
🛻 Travel to Tahquamenon
Tahquamenon Falls
🛻Travel to pictured rocks (1:30)
Chapel beach loop at pictured rocks (maybe - 2:20)
Pictured rocks cruise
Roadside parks/falls
🛻Travel to Marquette (45 min)
🏨Stay night at Marquette
Day 2:
🛻Travel to Ontonagon (2 hrs)
Canyon falls roadside park
Middle falls in l’anse
Presque Isle Falls Hike (2-3 hrs)
Porcupine mountains - Summit Peak Trail 1 hrs)
🏨Stay night in Ontonagon
Day 3:
Escarpment Trail/Lake of the Clouds (4-5 hrs)
Stop at roadside parks on the way back to the troll den
I assume most of the 6+ miles is un-paved, which is fine....but the spectrum of quality of un-paved roads varies greatly (i.e. sandy vs gravel vs dirt hard-pack), which very mich impacts my desire to bike or not.
Kayaking the Bowman>Sulak stretch this weekend and trying to avoid using a spotter car if possible by biking from car at Sulak to staged kayaks at Bowman. I've connected a lot of launches and landings on various different river stretches via bike in the past (gov't landing>hodenpyl, upper branch>barothy, harvey>baxter, etc.), but never done this stetch.
Wondering if S Mac Rd is legit to bike or if I should stick to the main (paved) highways. Typically prefer the back roads with less traffic if possible.
genuine question for the folks who camp the marquee spots (yosemite valley, glacier, the redfish lake stuff). the release-morning game feels rigged now. you set the alarm for 8am six months out and half the time it's all red by 8:01. planning ahead barely matters when a whole summer's inventory is gone in seconds.
so i've mostly given up on winning the release and started playing the cancellation game instead. someone always changes plans and a site quietly reappears for a few minutes. that reappearance feels like the only door left in.
what i'm trying to figure out from people who actually do this:
- do you just hand-check the calendar over and over, or is there a rhythm to when cancellations show up? (evenings before a trip? monday mornings?)
- for the popular valley sites, is there any realistic window inside a month out, or is it purely luck?
- rvers with a bigger rig, how do you deal with the fact that half the sites won't even fit you? do you filter first or just accept the chase?
i had a friend who planned a glacier trip a month too late and still pulled it off by catching a cancellation, so i know it happens. just want to hear how the people who do it consistently actually do it instead of refreshing recreation.gov like it's a part-time job. what's worked for you?
This thing was huge, wish I had got a pic to show scale.
My family and I are camping at 12 mile beach campground at pictured rocks in mid September. I’m wondering what to expect for average weather temperatures? Is it a possibility of snow? I’m trying to plan ahead for packing and make sure we have enough warm items especially for bed time! I have looked up the average temperatures of the area but looking for personal experiences, thanks!
Hi all, my friends and I are interested in backpacking/camping in Pictured Rocks this October, around the 20th. Obviously weather isn’t forseeable this far out but I was wondering if it’d be too cold for us.
We don’t mind being cold, it’s more of a viability/safety thing. Thanks!
Hi all,
I'm looking ahead at my schedule for next year and it looks like the best time for me to do the Pictured Rocks and Grand Island combo is in mid September. Curious to hear reports from others who've done the PRNL or Grand Island that time of year. I assume bugs (especially tourists) will be low by then? I'm guessing a fair expectation for weather is mid 60's during the day and potentially mid 40's at night? September is obviously the season of change on Lake Superior and I understand how the Lake can throw anything it wants at you that time of year.
I'm considering my itinerary to be something like 4 nights in the Lakeshore, a night or two in Munising (with a kayak guided tour if the Lake allows) and a night on Grand Island. Has anyone had issues getting reservations for the Backcountry in both the Lakeshore and Grand Island for that time of year? I plan to book those ASAP, which would be 6 months out from the looks of it.
Really curious on some insights on Grand Island. Seems to be a mixed bag on the Internet. But how bad can an island on Lake Superior be? I've heard the western side of the island provides the best views and the eastern island is mainly a long walk in the woods. Hence why it seems 1 night to do the loop seems reasonable. Is it best to do this loop CW or CCW? Or maybe just do an out and back on the West side of that's where the views are?
Thanks!
Made my yearly summer trip over the bridge to do some dispersed camping and kayaking. Spent 4 days in the Search Bay Nature Preserve near Hessel, kayaking the shores and calm turquoise waters. Then 6 days on the Manistique River with a couple day trips to the Seney Nature Preserve. It was one of the most beautiful, peaceful, and serene experiences I’ve ever had.
Hi adventurers,
This is our plan so far for my birthday weekend.
Saturday 5am we drive from Chicago to Jean Kay's Pastries in Iron mountain. It'll be on our way to Quincy Mines where we will do the cool freaking mine tour. On Sunday we want to kayak on Pictured Rocks in Munising. This will be on Labor Day weekend unfortunately, and was wondering if anyone has any recommendations for that weekend? I believe I'll be off Monday but not too sure so just sticking to the weekend.
Thanks!
*Edit* Right now we decided to go up Friday night and get a place around Iron mountain and go to Quincy Mines Saturday morning. We got reservations for a sunset kayak tour at Pictured Rocks Sunday evening. We're looking for a spot around Munising now but not very picky. Looking at Au Train Lake.
We do want to see some waterfalls, go fishing, and hike a bit if possible, I'm a little lady with an ambitious heart lol.
Keep the recs coming for stuff to do/places to go in between, and thank you for being so helpful!
Taking a camping trip with my pup to the north 😅. We’re not first time campers but we haven’t really camped where or when there are bears. Any tips on black bears during this time of year? Do I NEED bear spray? I have a bear canister for food. But we’re tent camping and I’ll be able to keep most things in the car. Thanks for any tips. Please let me know if I’m breaking any rules with this post I don’t post here often. Thanks in advance!
Update: I could do 2-3 hours away. I really want to see it and will lose some sleep for it. Recommendations further out then, please!
Hello all! I want to see the meteor shower wednesday night and I know that means i have to hit a spot with no light pollution. Because i work Thursday morning, i would like recommendations on campsites where i can just easily register online and is within reasonable distance (prefereably no more than an hour) from Detroit. I would appreciate any additional advice on tips for what I should do/bring to best enjoy the meteor shower!
Me and my friends are backpacking in a couple days and still have no idea where we want to go and are in urgent need of recommendations.
Please exclude the following since we’ve already been or are saving:
-pictured rocks
-sleeping bear dunes
-Nordhouse dunes
We are really hoping to fish as well so it’d be awesome if the recs included some good spots, also doesn’t need to be in Michigan but preferably within a 12 hour drive of the Detroit area.
Ive heard a lot of hype about porcupine mountains but were hoping to avoid at the moment since I’ve heard the ticks are bad right now.