Presque Isle Park and Sugarloaf, Marquette's outdoor gems

One of the best things about living in or visiting Marquette is how quickly you can get from downtown to genuinely beautiful Lake Superior wilderness. Two spots in particular are local favorites, and both are just minutes from the city.

Presque Isle Park — “presque isle” is French for “almost an island” — is a 300-plus-acre forested headland that juts into Lake Superior at the north end of the city. Locals just call it “the Island.” A scenic two-mile loop road (closed to cars in winter, which makes it lovely for walking and skiing) wraps the perimeter past overlooks where Lake Superior crashes against ancient cliffs. The star is the Black Rocks: dark basalt ledges, well over a billion years old, where on warm summer days you’ll see people leap from the cliffs into the cold, clear water below — a Marquette rite of passage. There are quiet beaches, miles of inner trails, and a famous sunset point, and the whole park is free.

A few miles north on County Road 550 is Sugarloaf Mountain, one of the most rewarding short hikes anywhere in the U.P. It’s only about a half mile to the top — there’s an easier route and a steeper one, both ending in a series of wooden staircases — and the payoff is huge: three observation platforms perched around a thousand feet up, looking out over Lake Superior, the city and its ore dock and Superior Dome, Little Presque Isle, and the rolling Huron Mountains to the west. Bring decent shoes and give yourself time at the top; the view earns it.