Feeling a bit of cabin fever this winter? Now is a wonderful time to head to the Porcupine Mountains and Ontonagon area to enjoy the fresh winter air. Here are our top suggestions for cold-weather things you need to see!

 

Frozen Waterfalls

Have you been to all of our waterfalls already? Visit them this winter to see the pure beauty that nature creates with changing temperatures. These massive frozen falls document the area’s weather in a still sculpture. Sometimes they completely freeze over and other times you can still hear and see the moving water.

 

Lantern-lit Trail

The soft snow-muffled trails make for a relaxing outing in the Porcupine Mountains area. Add a lantern-lit trail, and you have the makings for a fun night adventure in the woods. You can rent snowshoes at the Porcupine Mountains Winter Sports Complex, or bring your own. The trail is also groomed for cross-country skiing and fat tire biking, if you prefer that speed. You can see the lantern-lit trail schedule by clicking here.

 

Winter Sunset

Sunsets and sunrises are beautiful, but have you seen them in the winter yet? The reflection of warm, glowing sunlight bounces off the cold, shiny ice, creating a stunning contrast in nature. Stop by one of the beaches that make up miles of freshwater shoreline to catch the sun falling behind the Porcupine Mountains and mounds of lake ice.

 

Ice Volcanoes

Many decades ago, there were active volcanoes in our region, but those are long gone. You can still experience a different kind of volcano on Lake Superior, though! As ice moves into our area, it starts to bunch up and grow an ice shelf. This ice shelf then allows waves to continually splash up. After many days of water splashing and freezing, it creates tall, volcano-like structures. On the right day, you can watch explosions of water erupting from the center of these newly formed volcanoes! Please, do not walk on the ice alone. It is very dangerous to walk out onto the shelf ice, and it’s best to witness this from the shore.

 

Pancake Ice

No, you do not need maple syrup for these pancakes! The water current of Lake Superior forms some perfectly round chunks of floating ice that look like floating pancakes. If you visit the Ontonagon River in downtown Ontonagon, you can listen to the surreal clinking sound of pancake ice bumping into each other. It almost looks like watching the water breathe at points! A slow rise and fall of ice pancakes is an otherworldly thing to experience!

 

Visit the Porcupine Mountains and Ontonagon area this winter to get outside and appreciate all the beauty that nature provides!