PHOTO BY MICHAEL PALKO
PHOTO BY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
Although it is closed until June 15 due to COVID-19, Isle Royale Park celebrated 80 years as a National Park in April. This 45-mile long island in northern Lake Superior near Thunder Bay and Grand Portage, Minnesota is only accessible via boat or seaplane, Very nearly in Canada, the main island and its 400 smaller islands became U.S. territory in 1843 from the Ojibwa Native American tribe. President Franklin D. Roosevelt made it a national park on April 3, 1940.
The land is known for camping, hiking, fishing, paddling, moose, gray wolves, snowshoe hare, minks, otters, loon calls and beautiful views of the nighttime sky thanks to very little light pollution. You can even see the northern lights during dark nights.
“No other national park offers such an intimate experience with the outdoors,” says Brad Barnett, executive director for the Keweenaw Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Isle Royale’s remoteness and undisturbed ecology are precisely why visitors love the island.”
The island is one of the least-visited National Parks in the country. Only parks in Alaska see fewer guests every year. However, Isle Royale takes the top spot for time guests spend in the park. While visits to others last around four hours, Isle Royale sees guests stay for around 3.5 days.
To learn more about the park, visit nps.gov/isro/index.htm.
