Our July 2016 visit to Isle Royale National Park continued with a hike from Hidden Lake to Lookout Louise, a round trip distance of two miles. The first 1/3 mile from the dock is relatively flat, but the average grade is over 8% for the final 2/3 mile. The trailhead is over ten miles by foot from Rock Harbor, but less than two miles by kayak. Unfortunately, kayak rentals were suspended for the day due to wind. So we booked the guided tour that included transportation from dock to dock as well as an intern to lead the hike. Approximately twenty people made the trip. The intern was from the North Woods of Minnesota and had spent quite a bit of time at Isle Royale over the years. His comments on the flora, fauna, geography, geology, and history of the island were much appreciated by the group.
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| Topographic map with GPS route |
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| Elevation profile |
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| The Sandy at the Hidden Lake dock |
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| Hidden Lake |
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| One of many boardwalks along the trail |
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| Typical path conditions of dirt, rocks and roots |
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| More rocks and roots |
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| Camouflaged boulders |
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| Trail winds through the boulders |
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| Monument Rock |
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| Lack of soil prevents forest encroachment on this meadow |
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| A very large boulder beside the trail |
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| Another view of Monument Rock |
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| Greenstone Ridge trail junction |
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| Another open field |
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| A single-plank width boardwalk |
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| The entire island was logged nearly a century ago and the new forest is extremely slow-growing |
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| The trail winds through grasses and thimbleberry |
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| Thunder Mountain on the Sibley Penninsula in Ontario, Canada (22 miles) |
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| Duncan Bay with Five Finger Bay in the distance |
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| Lake Superior and the Canadian shoreline |
Entry to Isle Royale National Park is free. However, the park charges a daily user fee of $4 per adult (over 11 years) per calendar day. This fee is not covered by the Interagency Annual Pass, Interagency Senior Pass, or the Interagency Access Pass. In addition, this is the only national park that completely closes for the winter. The island is closed from November 1 through April 15.
The park website is https://www.nps.gov/isro.
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