"Life is short, make every day an adventure."
- Unknown
Our favorite outdoor activities include hiking, biking and kayaking. Fortunately for us, Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula afforded us a multitude of ways to pursue those activities. During our weeklong stay there in July, we took advantage of as many of our favorite activities as we could when we weren't tracking down lighthouses, waterfalls, and other sites of interest to us.
Kayaking on Torch Lake
During our week on the peninsula, we were conveniently camped on the shore of 2700-acre Torch Lake. At its northern end, the lake is fed by Traprock River. The lake is 6 miles long and 1-1/2 miles wide with a maximum depth of 120 feet. The south end of the lake drains into Torch Bay, which in turn drains into Portage Lake.
Torch Lake has a troubled past. It was the site of multiple mining operations and the copper processing industry through the 1900s. As a result, contamination from stamp sands, chemicals and heavy metals left the lake so badly polluted it was determined the technology needed to clean the lake just hadn't been invented yet. The lake was declared a Superfund site in 1986 and work to clean it began in 1998. Fortunately progress as been made. Swimming is permitted from clean beaches or by diving off of boats and limited consumption of fish is permitted.
During our stay we saw people swimming on the campground beach and from the adjacent community park. Motorboats glided up and down the lake, perhaps on their way to Lake Superior via Portage Lake and the Keweenaw Waterway.
Although we were concerned about possible exposure to contamination during our stay, we had read a lot on the internet and the National Park Service's website about the lake and felt we were safe kayaking on it as long as we didn't walk on the bottom of the lake. At 120 feet deep, that wasn't going to be a problem!
We kayaked on the lake late in the afternoon on two occasions, putting in at the campground's dock. The first time we followed the shore northward and up the Traprock River. The second time we paddled south along the shore toward Portage Lake. We enjoyed exploring the lake, especially the northern end where it was shallow and peaceful as we were the only kayakers up that far.
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 | | Traprock River |
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 | | View of a building in a private community on the shore of Torch Lake. It had a flashing light in the cupola that we could see from our campground. |
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Hiking on Mount Baldy
On July 22, 2024, after spending the morning exploring some waterfalls and lighthouses on the western shore of the Keweenaw Peninsula, we drove to the trailhead for a hike to the top of Mount Baldy, previously known as Lookout Mountain. Mount Baldy earned its new name because of the way high winds have shaped the vegetation and terrain at the highest elevations. Bedrock balds are extremely rare in Michigan. Balds are usually found at high elevations on a mountain summit where there is a lot of grass and shrubs with few or no trees. Mount Baldy is the largest and least disturbed bald remaining in Michigan.
We found the trailhead at the Helmut and Candis Stern Preserve, located just outside of Eagle Harbor. The trail to the summit of Mount Baldy, which towers 730 feet above Lake Superior, is a steady, uphill climb of about 3 miles. The trail starts out with a sand dune to climb, but the trail quickly turned into dirt and rock. We were delighted to find some ripe thimbleberries along the trail and we couldn't resist stopping to snack on some along our way. We bought a jar of Thimbleberry Jam while in Copper Harbor and were told by the shop owner what the plant looked like. The berries grow primarily in western states and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We also enjoyed the many wildflowers along the path.
We followed the trail across a creek and past a metal gate blocking ATVs from going any further. About 3/4 of the way up we came to a clearing that almost fooled us into thinking we had reached the top.
We continued on the trail until we found the marker proving we had made it to the top of the 1,335 foot mountain. The spectacular panoramic views of Lake Superior, Lake Bailey and the Keweenaw Peninsula, made the climb well worth it.
 | | Mount Baldy summit marker |
 | | View of Eagle Harbor from Mount Baldy |
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 | | View of Lake Bailey & Lake Superior from the top of Mount Baldy |
 | | Closeup view of Eagle Harbor Lighthouse |
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After finishing our hike and returning to our truck, we decided to ride along the Brockway Mountain Drive. Billed as the highest above sea-level drive between the Rockies and the Alleghenies, the drive starts near Eagle Harbor and winds 9-1/2 miles into Copper Harbor. We were disappointed to find the road was a bit rough and much in need of repair. Although it slowed us down, we enjoyed stopping at several scenic overlooks along the way where we were treated to more views of Lake Superior and the Keweenaw Peninsula. We could only imagine what these views must look like in the fall!
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 | | View of Copper Harbor & Lake Fanny Hooe |
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 | | View from the overlook. |
 | | Copper Harbor Lighthouse |
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Hancock - Lake Linden Trail
On July 23, 2024 we went for a bicycle ride starting at Porvoo Park in Hancock, and heading north past the aerial lift bridge on a trail toward Lake Linden.
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| Aerial Lift Bridge |
Although listed as a multi-use trail, the mostly dirt and gravel pathway was a bit rough in spots because it is mostly used by ORVs and mountain bikers. For the most part, the trail was flat with a few small ups and downs. But we did encounter quite a few muddy potholes that we had to maneuver around. After leaving the waterfront in Hancock, the trail follows along the path of a former railway line on its way to Dollar Bay. Along the way we passed by some buildings that are part of the historic Quincy Mine complex.
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| Quincy Smelting Works |
After crossing over Rt. 26 above Dollar Bay, we followed another trail as it climbed up through the forest, passing through Tamarack and on to Lake Linden. Here the trail was again mostly level with a few ups and downs on the mostly dirt road, but once again we found ourselves frequently playing dodgem with numerous muddy potholes along the route. Discounting the road obstacles, we encountered almost no other people on the trail and for the most part enjoyed the quiet 10 mile ride through the forest before turning around and heading back to Hancock. It was definitely not the typical rail-trail ride, but we did enjoy the scenery - not so much the mud holes and large stones on the trail near the mine complex.
Click here to view a video of our bike ride.
Houghton Waterfront & Houghton-Chassell Trails
We decided to finish up our week on the Keweenaw Peninsula with a 20.5 mile bicycle ride on July 26, 2024. The Houghton Waterfront and Houghton-Chassell trails run along the Houghton side of the Keweenaw Waterway and proved to be a much smoother ride than our previous ride on the other side. The trails join together to form a 10.25 mile pathway on the former Houghton Chassell and Southwestern Railway. The paved Houghton Waterfront portion of the trail begins at Houghton Waterfront Park. It follows along the waterway past a historic train depot, through the campus of Michigan Tech, and past some waterfront parks. We could see the Quincy Mine complex across the waterway as well as some abandoned mining equipment left behind in the water.
 | | Looking back at the Aerial Lift bridge |
 | | Quincy Mine complex |
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 | View from the trail
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 | | Abandoned mining equipment |
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 | | View from the trail |
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After the path crosses over the Pilgrim River and passes the Nara Nature Park, it changes into a gravel surface and becomes the Houghton-Chassell Trail. This part of the path is very scenic as it passes by homes and cottages along the Portage Lake shoreline. We followed the trail through Chassell until the trail came to an abrupt end, and after turning around returned to the Nara Nature Park so we could explore it.
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| View of the village of Chassell |
The Nara Nature Park is a 100 acre nature park located at the east end of the Houghton Waterfront Trail. We parked our bikes and walked down onto the elevated wooden boardwalk of the Nara Nature Trail which runs along both banks of the Pilgrim River. It winds through wetlands with beautiful views out over the water.
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 | | Looking back at the bike trail crossing over the river. |
 | | The Pilgrim River empties into Portage Lake |
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Click
here to view a video of our bike ride.
After returning to our truck we found a place along the waterfront to park and eat our lunch. We had worked up quite an appetite and considering
Roy's Pasties and Bakery was within sight of where we parked, we decided to treat ourselves to some sweets. We had a hard time choosing from the selection and must say, they were some of the best baked goods we had on our entire trip!
* All photos and videos are the property of the owners unless otherwise noted. *
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