Earlier this summer, I took a vacation to the Upper Peninsula, and one of my stops was Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Due to poor weather conditions, I wasn’t able to fully experience the area and decided to go back this past weekend. Both of our trips were full of delicious food, fun, and of course, beautiful Pure Michigan!

Where to Stay

On our first trip, we stayed in a yurt at Paddler’s Village, right on the shore of Lake Superior. The yurt is a circular structure that is somewhat between a tent and a cabin. We had a great time staying at this campground, which offers platform tents, yurts, and cabins for nightly rental in a beautiful location!

This time, we decided to stay a bit further out of town and chose Berry’s Motel in Newberry, Michigan. This rustic log motel was clean, comfortable and affordable. Berry’s also has cabins available for rental.

What to Do

The most obvious thing to do is tour the Pictured Rocks! You can take a kayak tour through Paddling Michigan or a glass bottom boat Shipwreck Tour, although we opted for a two hour boat tour with Pictured Rocks Cruises. The tour began in Munising and took us 32 miles round trip to see all the highlights of Pictured Rocks.

Photo credit: Jared Schlueter

We also hiked to several waterfalls in the area, including Chapel Falls, Munising Falls, and Miners Falls.

Where to Eat

Our favorite meal came from Pictured Rocks Pizza, which offers delicious wood fired pizzas, pasta dishes, and many other menu items. We also enjoyed The Duck Pond Eatery & Beer Garden, which is located right on the Paddler’s Village property, and Falling Rock Cafe, which offers coffee drinks, ice cream, and a breakfast/lunch cafe.

Our state truly has so much to offer. Add Pictured Rocks to your list of places to visit if you haven’t already!