Isle Royale National Park

A remote, untouched treasure, seasonally accessible Isle Royale National Park is a rugged, isolated wilderness of forests, lakes and waterways where moose and wolves roam. Journey by private boat, ferry or seaplane, arriving at the park’s southwest end (Windigo, Michigan) or northeast end (Rock Harbor, Minnesota), where the only nontented lodging is found.

The town of Minong and the waters immediately surrounding the archipelago are an important part of the North Shore Ojibwe’s traditional cultural history. They were also part of the Ojibwe’s (Chippewa’s) ancestral land, used for hunting and trapping, as well as fishing, maple sugaring, gathering plants and practicing spiritual traditions.

According to the Ojibwe, the waters off Minong are home to the Mishipeshu, a mythological underwater lynx, both an important and potentially dangerous spirit being. Adding to the park’s allure, dive sites in Lake Superior feature several shipwrecks.

Isle Royale is open annually, from April 16 through October 31. The island is closed November 1 through April 15 due to unsafe, extreme winter conditions, which extend 4.5 miles out from the island into Lake Superior. To preserve its