Last week I wrote about Detroit’s riverfront in Southeast Michigan. Today I’m going north—far north—to the Keeweenaw Peninsula on Lake Superior, specifically the town of Copper Harbor at its very northern end. Copper Harbor is among “The 16 Best Lake Towns in the U.S.,” according to Trips to Discover, though that wasn’t the reason I chose to vacation there last July.
I wanted to get away and see more of Michigan, and Copper Harbor was about as far as I could go without camping. Instead, I rented a cabin as my home base and spent a week driving up and down the peninsula, stopping at the Jampot for baked goods and Peterson’s Fish Market for whitefish lunches. I descended into the earth for a tour of the Quincy Mine and climbed a narrow spiral staircase to the top of the Eagle Harbor Lighthouse (and then had to slowly talk myself back down). As I walked around Fort Wilkins State Park I thought about how isolated and remote life had been for those stationed there in the 19th century, cut off from regular contact with the rest of the world for months at a time during the winter. I drove up to the starting point of U.S. 41, the same road that I’ve traveled on while visiting family in Southwest Florida, 1,900 miles away. And on several mornings I bought breakfast at Jamsen’s Bakery, tasting for the first time Finnish specialties like pannukakku topped with thimbleberry preserves.
The bakery sits on a pier jutting into Lake Superior; even in late July it was too cold and windy early in the day to eat outside. Instead, I took my coffee and pannukakku back to the cabin to enjoy while I read before setting off on another day of acquainting myself with another side of Michigan.
Feature photo: Jamsen’s Bakery in Copper Harbor, MI, July 25, 2022.
Maura Elizabeth Cunningham 