Miners Castle, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a

U.S. National Lakeshore The United States has ten protected areas known as national seashores and three known as national lakeshores, which are public lands operated by the National Park Service (NPS), an agency of the Department of the Interior. National seashores and ...

in the

Upper Peninsula The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, United States. It extends for 42 miles (67 km) along the shore of

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

and covers . The park has extensive views of the hilly shoreline between

Munising Munising ( ') is a city in Alger County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,355 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Alger County. The city is partially surrounded by Munising Township, but the two are administered auton ...

and Grand Marais in

Alger County Alger County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 Census, the population was 8,842. Its county seat is Munising, Michigan, Munising. The Pictured ...

, with picturesque

rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sediment ...

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

s, and sand

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

s. Pictured Rocks derives its name from the 15 miles (24 km) of colorful

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

cliffs northeast of Munising. The cliffs reach up to 200 feet (60 m) above lake level. They have been naturally sculptured into a variety of shallow caves,

arches An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vault ...

, and formations resembling castle turrets and human profiles. Near Munising, visitors can also visit Grand Island, most of which are included in the separate

Grand Island National Recreation Area The Grand Island National Recreation Area is a national recreation area in Hiawatha National Forest under jurisdiction of the U.S. Forest Service. Located on Grand Island, Michigan offshore from Munising, Michigan, the Grand Island National Recr ...

. The

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...

designated Pictured Rocks the first National Lakeshore in the United States in 1966. It is governed by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

(NPS), with 22 year-round NPS employees as of May 2006, and received 1,313,179 visitors in 2021.

Geology

The colors in the cliffs are created by the large amounts of minerals in the rock. The cliffs are composed of the

Munising Formation The Munising Group or Formation is a thick, white to light grey Cambrian sedimentary unit that crops out in Michigan and (to a lesser extent) Ontario. At one end of its extent, it comprises a basal conglomerate overlain by the Chapel Rock Memb ...

of 500-million-year-old

Cambrian The Cambrian Period ( ; sometimes symbolized C with bar, Ꞓ) was the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 53.4 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran Period 538.8 million ...

Period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...

. The Munising Formation sits atop

Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...

sandstone of the

Jacobsville Formation Jacobsville Sandstone is a red sandstone formation, marked with light-colored streaks and spots, primarily found in northern Upper Michigan, portions of Ontario, and under much of Lake Superior. Desired for its durability and aesthetics, the sands ...

. The mottled red Jacobsville Formation is the oldest rock in the park. On top of the Munising Formation, acting as a cap over the other layers is the hard sandstone of the younger

Au Train Formation The Au Train Formation is a geologic formation in Michigan. It preserves fossils dating back to the Ordovician period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertai ...

from the

Ordovician The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and System (geology), system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era (geology), Era. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period million years ago (Mya) to the start ...

Period. Streaks on the face of the cliffs come from groundwater leaching out of the rock and evaporating, leaving streaks of

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

(red),

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

(black-white),

limonite Limonite () is an iron ore consisting of a mixture of hydrated iron(III) oxide-hydroxides in varying composition. The generic formula is frequently written as FeO(OH)·H2O, although this is not entirely accurate as the ratio of oxide to hydroxid ...

(yellow-brown),

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

(pink-green), and other minerals.

History

Although the Pictured Rocks shore waters are a rich fishing ground, the sandstone cliffs are dangerous to canoes and other open boats skirting the coastline. In 1658, the fur trader

Pierre Esprit Radisson Pierre-Esprit Radisson (1636/1640–1710) was a French fur trader and explorer in New France. He is often linked to his brother-in-law Médard des Groseilliers. The decision of Radisson and Groseilliers to enter the English service led to the f ...

made this risky passage and noted that his Native American companions made an offering of

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

to the local spirit of the cliffs. During the

Romantic Era Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

of the 1800s, a series of American writers described their feelings upon sight of the Pictured Rocks. Geologist and US Indian Agent

Henry Rowe Schoolcraft Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (March 28, 1793 – December 10, 1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 expedition to the source of the Mississippi R ...

visited in 1820 and remarked upon "some of the most sublime and commanding views in nature". In 1850, George Copway ''Kah-Ge-Ga-Gah-Bow'', a

Mississaugas The Mississauga are a subtribe of the Anishinaabe-speaking First Nations peoples located in southern Ontario, Canada. They are closely related to the Ojibwe. The name "Mississauga" comes from the Anishinaabe word ''Misi-zaagiing'', meaning "hose ...

Ojibwa The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

writer and Methodist missionary, published
The Traditional History and Characteristic Sketches of the Ojibway Nation
', in which he cited the detailed description of the Pictured Rock by General

Lewis Cass Lewis Cass (October 9, 1782June 17, 1866) was an American military officer, politician, and statesman. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He w ...

. Around 1850, developers planned a tourist resort, Grand Island City, adjacent to the Pictured Rocks near the current site of Munising. After the lumbering era ended around 1910, much of the land making up the current National Lakeshore reverted to the state of Michigan for unpaid property taxes. Eager for federal help and recognition, the state cooperated with the federal government in the region's redevelopment. In October 1966, Congress passed a bill authorizing the establishment of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore " to preserve for the benefit, inspiration, education, recreational use, and enjoyment of the public, a significant portion of the diminishing shoreline of the United States and its related geographic and scientific features." This was America's first National Lakeshore. On April 13, 2006, one of the named rock formations collapsed: the Inner Turret of Miner's Castle in the Munising Formation. The collapse was reported via cell phone by fishermen in the area, according to chief ranger Larry Hach. Miners Castle consists of crumbly cross-bedded sandstone poorly cemented by secondary quartz, according to Research Ecologist Walter Loope of the

U.S. Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...

. Rockfalls along the cliffs typically occur in the spring and fall due to freezing-thawing action. On March 30, 2009, the

Omnibus Public Land Management Act The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (, ) is a land management law passed in the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by President of the United States, President Barack Obama on March 30, 2009. The bill designates millions of ...

was signed into law, protecting of Pictured Rocks as the Beaver Basin Wilderness, spanning the 13 miles of shoreline.

Representation in other media

In 2010, singer

Kid Rock Robert James Ritchie (born January 17, 1971), known professionally as Kid Rock (also known as Bobby Shazam), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. His style alternates between rock, hip hop, country, and metal. A self-taught musician, ...

filmed the video for his song "Born Free" at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. In early 2014, Courtney Kotewa's snapshot of kayakers passing under a rock arch at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore was chosen as the grand prize winner of 2013 Share the Experience photo contest, sponsored by the National Park Foundation.

Access and accessibility

Munising, on the western end of the lakeshore, is accessed by M-28 and

M-94 The M-94 was a piece of cryptographic equipment used by the United States Army, consisting of several lettered discs arranged as a cylinder. It was also employed by the US Navy, under the name CSP 488. The device was conceived by Colonel Parker ...

. Grand Marais, on the eastern end, is reached by M-77. Paved highways penetrate the Lakeshore from both ends, connected by County Road H-58. Roads come close to the shoreline only near Miners Castle, 12 Mile Beach, and the Grand Sable Dunes. The rest of the shoreline is seen from land only by hiking. A 42-mile (67-km) section of the

North Country Trail The North Country National Scenic Trail, generally known as the North Country Trail or simply the NCT, is a footpath stretching over from Middlebury in central Vermont to Lake Sakakawea State Park in central North Dakota in the United States; ...

spans the lakeshore. A permit is needed for backcountry camping, which is allowed along many miles of the National Lakeshore. This means that

dispersed camping Dispersed Camping is the term given to camping in the United States on public land other than in designated campsites. This type of camping is most common on national forest and Bureau of Land Management land. Designated campsites often offer se ...

is not allowed in the park. Many boat companies offer daily trips along the lakeshore from

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

weekend through the fall season.

Sea kayak A sea kayak or touring kayak is a kayak developed for the sport of paddling on open waters of lakes, bays, and the ocean. Sea kayaks are seaworthy small boats with a covered deck and the ability to incorporate a spray deck. They trade off the man ...

ing is another popular way to explore the park. While this may be the best way to see the natural formations, it is a strenuous trip in cold, dangerous water, not to be undertaken lightly or without proper equipment. Guides are available. The most efficient port of entry for kayaks is from Miner's Beach or the harbor at Munising. In addition, pontoons can be cheaply rented locally. Winter sports activities include

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

snowshoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footwe ...

ing,

snowmobiling A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

, ice climbing, and

ice fishing Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities. Shelters Longer ...

. The administrators of Pictured Rocks have worked to make much of its rugged environment wheelchair accessible.Pictured Rocks Accessibility
/ref> Features include: * Interagency Visitor Center, Munising Falls Interpretive Center, and Miners Castle Information Station in Munising * Grand Sable Visitor Center in Grand Marais * Each drive-in campground has at least one handicapped-accessible campsite with an extended picnic table, boardwalk, pedestal fire grate, and nearby restroom * Log Slide overlook * Miners Castle overlooks (except lower overlook trail, which includes stairs and is steep) * Munising Falls viewing platform, with a paved trail * Boardwalk at Sand Point Marsh Trail, with large-print guide * Sand Point Beach parking with paved sidewalks, fully accessible picnic site, and boardwalk toward Lake Superior

Points of interest

From the west (Munising) to the east (Grand Marais): *

Munising Falls Munising Falls is a waterfall located in Munising in the westernmost portion of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Alger County, Michigan. The falls drops about over a sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly ...

, Interpretive Center * Sand Point, National Lakeshore Headquarters * Munising Coast Guard Station Boathouse Museum * Miners Castle rock formation, paved road to overlook (suffering major rockfall April 13, 2006) *

Miners River The Miners River is a river on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the United States. It is the largest river in the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Miners River has its origin outside of the National Lakeshore, north of Indian Town in the Hiawa ...

, emptying into

near Miners Beach. *

Miners Falls Miners Falls is a waterfall located on Miners River in the western portion of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Alger County, Michigan. The falls drops about over a sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly ...

interpretive trail * Grand Portal Point rock formations * Mosquito Falls * Mosquito River * Chapel Rock * Chapel Falls *

Beaver Basin Wilderness Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are ...

* Twelvemile Beach * Shipwrecks * White Birch Forest * Au Sable Point,

Au Sable Light Au Sable Light is an active lighthouse in the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore west of Grand Marais, Michigan off H-58. Until 1910, this aid to navigation was called "Big Sable Light" (not to be confused with Big Sable Point Light near Ludi ...

* Log Slide * Grand Sable Dunes *

Grand Sable Lake Grand Sable Lake is an undeveloped lake in Michigan's Upper Peninsula near the town of Grand Marais, Michigan. It lies within the boundaries of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. County Highway H-58 runs along the northwestern shore of the ...

* Sable Falls, Interpretive Center

Waterfalls

File:Munising Falls 804x603.JPG,

File:Miners' Falls, Michigan1.jpg,

File:Sable Falls 4a.JPG, Sable Falls Pictured Rocks is the site of many of Michigan's waterfalls. Most of the waterfalls resulted from water running over the cliffs of the Munising Formation. This lime and sandstone formation exists between

Tahquamenon Falls The Tahquamenon Falls ( or ) are a series of waterfalls on the Tahquamenon River, shortly before it empties into Lake Superior, in the northeastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They are the largest waterfalls in Michigan, and one of the larges ...

, some east, to Laughing Whitefish Falls, west of the Lakeshore. Pets are not allowed on most of the trails. * ''

''—A waterfall over a sandstone cliff. Along the trail may be seen ferns, wildflowers, and an occasional mink. The trail is fully accessible to people with disabilities and dogs are allowed.Waterfalls site bulletin, Pictured Rocks NL, Munising, Michigan * ''

''—This self-guiding interpretive trail passes Miners Basin and ends at Miners Falls. There are 77 steps leading down to the viewing platform. The falls drops over the sandstone outcrop. * '' Bridalveil Falls''—Bridalveil is a seasonal waterfall. In the summer, it may not exist or be only a trickle. * ''Mosquito Falls''—This falls drops over an rock shelf on the Mosquito River. River otters and beavers live in the stream along the trail. * ''Chapel Falls''—Two viewing platforms along the way provide views of the scenic Chapel Basin. Chapel Falls cascades some down the sandstone cliffs on its way to Chapel Lake. * ''Spray Falls''—This waterfall is best seen from Lake Superior. The 1856 shipwreck of the ''Superior'' is at the base of the falls in of water. * '' Sable Falls'' - Sable Falls tumbles over several cliffs of Munising and Jacobsville sandstone formations on its way to Lake Superior.

Grand Sable Dunes

The Grand Sable Dunes, at the eastern end of the Lakeshore, are a perched dune formation. Sand washed ashore by

wave In physics, mathematics, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from equilibrium) of one or more quantities. Waves can be periodic, in which case those quantities oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium (res ...

action was then blown upslope by northerly

prevailing winds In meteorology, prevailing wind in a region of the Earth's surface is a surface wind that blows predominantly from a particular direction. The dominant winds are the trends in direction of wind with the highest speed over a particular point on ...

until it came to rest atop a glacial

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...

. The Grand Sable Dunes today form a five-mile-long sand slope that rises from Lake Superior at a 35° angle. The summits of the tallest dunes are as high as 275 feet (85 m) above lake level. Glacial melt during the last major advance/retreat called the Marquette Readvance created the conditions for the formation of the Grand Sable Banks. Dominant northwesterly winds eventually caused blowing sand to become perched on the banks. Today, the Grand Sable Banks rise to heights of up to 300 ft. at a 35-degree angle from the shore of

. The Grand Sable Dunes perched on top of these banks offers a desolate sandscape with jack pine forest near the edges. In the late 19th century, loggers in the area built a wooden log slide from the top of the dunes at the Grand Sable Banks to Lake Superior below to facilitate the transportation of timber from the area. The location is a popular spot to view the Grand Banks and climb on the dunes. Visitors may also take a trail from the Grand Sable Visitors Center near the eastern end of the dunes or stop along a section of the dunes that border on

Recreational activities

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore offers a variety of recreational opportunities for visitors year-round, including hiking, back-country camping, kayaking, boating, swimming,

scuba diving Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...

, fishing, and winter activities including

, ice climbing, and

. The beautiful scenery, and variety of opportunities to enjoy the park attract significant visitors, including a record 800,000 in 2018.

Boating and kayaking

The colored rock formations attract kayakers and boat tours during the summer, as visitors flock to see the varied rock formations and colored rocks. Due to the danger of kayaking on the water near the cliffs, specialized equipment for sea-kayaking and knowledge are required to safely paddle near the cliffs.

Scuba diving

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a popular scuba diving destination in the Midwest and country, as the turbulent waters of Lake Superior have created many shipwrecks to explore over the years. A popular destination is the

Alger Underwater Preserve The Alger Underwater Preserve is a preservation area in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located in Lake Superior, it protects waters that lie offshore the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and the Grand Island National Recreation Area. Pictured Rock ...

Winter sports

Due to the

lake-effect snow Lake-effect snow is produced during cooler atmospheric conditions when a cold air mass moves across long expanses of warmer lake water. The lower layer of air, heated up by the lake water, picks up water vapor from the lake and rises up through ...

, Pictured Rocks and the

area have some of the highest snowfall across the country. This snowfall creates the perfect opportunity for snowmobilers, with dedicated snowmobile and cross-country ski trails in the park. Additionally, the long winter and constant runoff from snowmelt create one of the best ice-climbing opportunities in the country, with over 50 named ice formations. Ice climbing in Michigan attracts climbers from across the Midwest, the country, and even internationally. Additionally, the ice formations attract visitors to sightsee and explore the interesting ice features.

Climate and weather

References

External links

NPS Site

UP Trails Guide

Accessibility information from The Disabled Traveler's Companion

fishweb.com
Flickr photos of Pictured Rocks
{{Authority control National Park Service areas in Michigan Protected areas of Alger County, Michigan Cliffs of the United States Dunes of Michigan Landforms of Alger County, Michigan Cambrian Michigan Landmarks in Michigan Protected areas established in 1966 1966 establishments in Michigan