A weekend trip to Munising, Michigan offers a beautiful adventure to Pictured Rocks in Lake Superior!
For years, I’ve heard about Pictured Rocks in Munising, Michigan.
Even though we live hours south, Pure Michigan billboards regularly advertise this beautiful natural phenomenon.
Every time we would drive by a billboard, we would comment how pretty and that we should visit sometime soon.
Needless to say, it’s been on our bucket list to visit — and kayak — for awhile.
This summer, it finally happened!
We packed up our kayaks, our dog Bayleigh and hit the road for a long weekend.
Let me tell you: the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore didn’t disappoint.
Where is Pictured Rocks?
The Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore hugs the south shore of Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
It’s known for the naturally created, multicolored cliffs along the shoreline for several miles. There are many unusual sandstone formations along the way as well.
It’s one of the first times I can remember visiting Lake Superior as an adult. It was beautiful — the water color was unbelievable!
Things to do at Pictured Rocks
Visitors can enjoy the shoreline on guided boat tours or kayak tours.
Our original intention was to do a kayak tour… but the plan changed once we arrived.
Unfortunately, the weekend we went, it was just a little too windy for us to risk taking our kayaks out on the water.
We did consider renting kayaks so we could kayak the lakeshore, but ultimately decided to do a Pictured Rocks boat tour.
We got our tickets online ahead of time because we heard that boat tours can sell out fast!
When we arrived, we checked in and then lined up to board the boat. I would recommend Dramamine if you deal with any kind of motion sickness.
After the boat tour, we decided to do some hiking. There are over 100 miles of hiking trails to enjoy in a variety of distances!
We went to Miners Castle Overlook and it was breathtaking.
We also hiked Munising Falls and Miners Beach, which were both short trips.
There are also trails over one mile at Chapel Basin/Mosquito Falls Area, Miners Falls, Beaver Basin Wilderness and Au Sable Light Station.
We did a little research before leaving our hotel and found that pets are only permitted in certain areas so Bayleigh hung out in our hotel room for part of the day.
If you do want to take your dog, just double check the specific area you’re planning to visit first to make sure if they have a designated pet area.
After the walking around, it was time for lunch!
A little research led us to Taco Primo. It was ah-mazing.
We recommend Mexi Street Fried Corn Bites, Guacamole and the Beef Tacos. I’m drooling just thinking about it.
On the way home, we decided to visit the Mystery Spot in St. Ignace, Michigan. I’ll leave the mystery intact for you. 😉
While there, we did the zip line — which was my first time ever! It was a really cool experience.
Pictured Rocks really is Pure Michigan and so incredibly beautiful. It was the perfect weekend trip.
Have you visited Pictured Rocks?
