Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A permanent population on Madeline Island precluded its inclusion in the National
Lakeshore. Year-round numbers hover around 180, but it can swell 15-fold in summer,
when residents—mostly well-to-do from the Twin Cities—flock to their seasonal homes.
Thoughitisoneofthefastest-growingtouristdestinationsinnorthwesternWisconsin,don't
goexpectingCapeCodortheMainecoastline.Itis,rather,ahumble“islandgetaway”—15
minutes from the mainland, but thoroughly rustic and with a great state park to boot.
La Pointe
La Pointe is not much more than an assemblage of minor structures housing basic restaur-
ants, a museum, taverns, accommodations, and the few island services. There is the
His-
torical Museum
(226 Colonel Woods Ave., 715/747-2415, 9am-5pm daily Memorial Day-
early Oct., less thereafter; $7 adults, $3.50 children 12 and under). The holdings include
real “black robes” worn by Jesuits and John Jacob Astor's accounting papers.
Big Bay State Park
Two millennia ago, the land this park occupies was a shallow bay, what is now canoe-
worthyBigBayLagoon,anotherofthearchipelago'sremarkableecosystems.Thebesttrail
is the
Bay View Trail,
which traces the eastern promontory of the park, bypassing spec-
tacular wave-hewn sandstone formations, sea caves, and plenty of crashing Lake Superior
waves. The picnic area at the apex, where the trail hooks up with the
Point Trail,
might be
the most popular in Wisconsin. The beach is the most popular spot in the park, a mile and a
half of isolation.
Most campsites are isolated from each other—awesome. Some sites are pack-in, though
I'dhesitatetocallthembackpacking.TheMadelineIslandFerrydockpostssiteavailability
notices—get there way early July-early September. Reservations are available.
Other Sights
Heading east out of town along the main road, turn north on Old Fort Road to Madeline
Island's
Indian Burial Ground,
which is returning to its natural state. Farther east,
Me-
morial Park
features a warming pond and is the burial place of O-Shaka, son of legendary
Chief Buffalo, who preserved Native rights to lands on Lake Superior and Madeline Island
in 1854 treaties with the federal government. Interred in the cemetery are many of the ori-
ginal 20,000 Ojibwa who populated the island when the French arrived.
