Just North West of the town of Marquette, MI is a small peninsula called Presque Isle. This was actually our second attempt to access this peninsula and thankfully, this time we were successful.
The first time we were up this way they had the road closed off so we just had to look at the fantastic sights longingly from a distance.
If you want some more information on the park itself, you can see it here. We had just made a trip to a local sculpture park (I'll post about that later), and we decided to drive out to Presque Isle to check out the view.
As we were making the drive from the sculpture park back to Marquette, we noticed this freighter sitting out Lake Superior. It was actually a good sign for us because we were lucky enough to see a freighter being filled at the ore dock.
If you look really closely, you can see the ore dock just beyond the clump of bushes in this photo. Just beyond the ore dock is Presque Isle. This photo was taken approaching the park from the East after travelling through the heart of downtown Marquette.
As far as I know, this is one of the oldest ore docks in the state of Michigan that is still operating. You can see it looming large in the background of this photo. There is another one down near downtown Marquette that is no longer in operation.
As you can see, the freighter is almost as long the entire ore dock.
In this photo, you cans one of the chutes being lowered from the front of the ore dock (about seven in from the right). The ore is then dumped down the chute into the freighter.
Despite the natural wonder of Presque Isle park, you could sit for hours and appreciate the man made views that this area provides. I have a feeling many people just come here to watch the freighters come and go.
Moving along, we took the slow drive around the perimeter of the Presque Isle peninsula. There are a couple major points of interest during the drive. They also have spots at various locations where you can pull your car aside and park so you can enjoy the nature of the area.
If I had to do it again I would probably take my bike and ride my bike around Presque Isle so I could stop anytime I wanted and walk into the woods and then back out again quickly.
This area is called sunset point and it offers some beautiful views when the sun is setting. I've actually seen several people get married in this area and have special occasion pictures taken here.
Just a little south east of Sunset Point is another area called Black Rocks. This area is probably the most famous part of Presque Isle. On a hot day in the summer, you will see people all over the rocks in the photos above.
The climb the rocks and then jump into Lake Superior before moving back onto shore and doing it all over again.
Here is another view.
I think what impresses me the most about this area is just how clear the water is. You can kind of see what I am talking about in the photo above. It is just stunning and the different colored rocks make it amazing. I could sit and look at this water all day.
Before we left Presque Isle, we stopped back at the parking area and we walked out on the break wall that protects the bay from the fury that is Lake Superior. I am going to share the remainder of my photos from that.
This whole area is just stunning. I think that is pretty clear from the photos, but you honestly have to see it to believe it. It's just amazing. Out at the tip of the break wall is a light house but after a certain point, the path out to it is a bit treacherous. You have to jump across large rocks to get to it. We decided to take the soft route and turn back after walking down the easy part.
We did have a couple of kids with us after all.
I've still got a few more posts to share with you from Marquette. I'm looking forward to sharing them with you. I hope you end up loving this area as much as I do.
All pictures/screenshots taken by myself or
