The Least Visited National Park in the Lower 48
This is the second part of our National Parks in our Back Yard blog - click here to see Part 1 - Voyageurs. This picks up where we left off - driving to Grand Portage.
Driving to Grand Portage
The route from International Falls to Grand Portage takes you through the heart of 'da Range' , where Tim's family is from - places like Hibbing, Virginia, Chisholm to name a few. If we were hockey folks, we might have planned a stop at the Hockey Hall of Fame - but we're not, so we didn't. However we are beer folks, and we did almost stop in at Boomtown in Eveleth, but it was 11AM and we still had a few hours to drive. Maybe next time.
Before checking into the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino, we made a quick trip to the border to see Minnesota's tallest falls, Big Falls, at the Grand Portage State Park. Since the park is on land owned by Grand Portage Ojibwe, members of the Ojibwe community directed the development of displays in the park. Park visitors get a unique 'sense of place' at the only state park located within an Indian Reservation on land owned by the Tribe.
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| Big Falls - Minnesota's tallest falls, in Grand Portage State Park |
Returning to the casino, we grabbed a bite to eat in the bar (the only real dining option around except for the gas station), and Tim had a beer from Voyageur Brewing which we had not heard of prior. We discovered the brewery was actually in Grand Marias, and we added it our our itinerary.
Our Day on Isle Royale
As mentioned in the Part 1 entry, to visit Isle Royale you take a 90 minute ferry on Grand Portage Isle Royale Transportation Lines from Grand Portage, (you can also take a sea plane from Grand Marias, MN). The cost is $76 per person as of July 2021. There are options from Michigan however these are 4.5 and over 5 hour one-way rides. I found the ferry more restrictive - harder to book - so I booked our ferry ride first, then worked backwards for the rest of the trip including the Voyageurs part of the trip.
The Grand Portage - Windigo ferry boards at 8:10am, departing at 8:30. After a quick story by the captain and a visit to the Spirit Tree (here is another great photography site featuring the Spirit Tree) along the shores of Lake Superior, we headed the Isle Royale, arriving at 10:00AM.
Temperatures in the area were seasonably warm, in the upper 80's. But when you're on a ferry going about 20 knots on the largest fresh water lake in the world, it's about 60 degrees. Refreshing to say the least - and there is an indoor area to sit if you want. Not much else as far as amenities so remember to bring your own food and water. From the shore we thought we could see Isle Royale, but after about 20 minutes I said "that can't be it - it can't take 90 minutes to go there?". But it was. And it did. That's how big the island is! I had a book to read but really enjoyed just staring out across the water.
As we approached the island we saw the Rock of Ages lighthouse, and during our visit the Rock of Ages Restoration Society gave a presentation on the construction and their restoration efforts. We approached even closer to the lighthouse during our departure - close enough to see members of the restoration team waving at us!
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| Our hiking coverage |
While we didn't see any moose - it's still a beautiful place, and certainly much less crowded than many of the other National Parks. There are 36 campgrounds on the island, and all campgrounds offer tent sites, a water source, and outhouses. Some campgrounds on Lake Superior offer shelters and picnic tables. It's a bit more rustic than I prefer but I'm sure for some hard core campers it would be amazing.
Fun fact: Lake Superior, which is the largest freshwater lake in the world by area, and within Lake Superior, the largest island is Isle Royale. The largest lake within Isle Royale is called Siskiwit, and the largest island in Lake Siskiwit is called Ryan Island. And that makes Ryan Island the largest island in the largest lake in the largest island in the largest lake in the world. Check it out on the island map above - Lake Siskiwit is on the south central portion of the island.
Driving to Two Harbors
Upon arrival back at Grand Portage, we had a 2.5 hour drive to Two Harbors, our destination for the evening. We did make a pit stop about 45 minutes into our drive in Grand Marias at Voyageurs Brewing - see our review here.
After checking in at the Voyageur Motel (do you see a theme emerging?) right off 61, we drove less than a mile to get dinner and taste a few at Castle Danger. Unfortunately, as I mentioned it was unseasonably warm, and the pizza place we called for delivery to the brewery was closed due to the temperature in the kitchen. By this time it was getting later in the evening, and like many small towns, many restaurants in Two Harbors close by 8pm. We ended up hitting the McDonald's drive through - a cheeseburger tastes amazing when you haven't eaten in eight hours! Did I say it was unseasonably warm? Did I mention old school motels sometimes don't have AC?
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| Another northern MN motel |
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| Classic old school motel - notice the check out time 'dial' |
Our Drive Home
On day five of our road trip we drove the remaining 188 miles home, making our full trip 960 miles. We visited Big Falls, International Falls, viewed the High Falls and drove through Little Falls. We certainly saw a lot of places along the north shore and inland we'd like to visit again, but demand is very high for the resorts, cabins and very limited full-hookup campgrounds in the area. Planning ahead and booking as soon as spots are available is key. We'd love to return to Voyageurs - the brewery and the National Park, that is - not so sure about the motel!
Have you been to Isle Royale National Park? Did you camp on the Isle? Leave your comments below! Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.
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