The Upper Peninsula’s Hidden Gems

The other day I happened to be talking to another real estate agent, and he mentioned that he is taking his family on vacation to the Upper Peninsula this summer. Then, on Facebook over the weekend, I saw a former co-worker spent their anniversary in the U.P. over the 4th of July weekend. It got me thinking about my travel in our state’s Upper Peninsula.

Some of my earliest recollections of traveling the U.P. are with my parents. As a family we would travel up there from time to time. It was like my Father wouldn’t stop at any tourist stop south of the Mackinac Bridge! (I never made it to Sea Shell City until about five years ago, when I stopped as an adult!) But once we crossed over the bridge, we spent a lot of time in the St. Ignace and Sault Ste. Marie areas.

Remember Indian Village in St. Ignace? The last time I was in the U.P. it was still there. Just the smell of walking into that building brings back so many memories! I don’t think the quality of the products they sell now are anywhere near what they used to be, but I guess even the rubber tomahawk gets made more cheaply as time goes by!

Another stop on our U.P. trip was always Castle Rock! The souvenir shop, Paul Bunyan and his blue ox Babe, and then the climb to the top of Castle Rock. Castle Rock stands over 195 feet tall. It opened as tourist attraction back in 1928. How many times have you made that climb?

One of my favorite spots, that a lot of people have never been to, is Kitch-iti-kipi Springs, located in the Palms Book State Park. Kitch-iti-kipi is the largest natural freshwater spring in Michigan. You may often hear it referred to as “The Big Spring”. The lake, or “pool”, is actually 40 feet deep and the water is crystal clear. You can easily see the fissures on the bottom, as well as fish, and trees that have fallen into the water over the years. The water remains a constant 45 degrees. There is a self-powered raft that goes out over the springs for a better view. Part of the raft has an open bottom to give you a clear view of what is happening in the water below.

In the coming weeks I’ll do longer posts on some of the different spots around our state that I have visited and would recommend. I’d also like to hear about your travel experiences. What are your favorite spots? Do you have perhaps a “hidden” Michigan gem that you would like to share? Please send me your information below and maybe I can even feature your favorite spot in an upcoming post!

Happy Travels!