Eagle River
Eagle River, Michigan... On the beach.
Eagle River is one of the Copper Country destinations that most people visit if they are touring the area. Like most Copper Country towns, it was a result of the copper mining boom around the mid 1800′s. The original Eagle River Lighthouse still stands close to the river mouth, but a large condominium building obscures its view of the shore. The beach at Eagle River doesn’t seem to care that the town is no longer booming – its just as sandy as it was 150 years ago. The beach is big, flat, easy to get to, and has nice picnic tables and benches dispersed about.
Nice beach.
The water at Eagle River is Lake Superior. Duh. So it’s Lake Superior temperatures. It’s the northwestern shore of the Keweenaw, so it’s a GREAT place to watch the sunset. There are usually lots of waves, given the location and prevailing westerly winds. Also a good swimming beach – the bottom is sandy and the water is sufficiently deep without walking a half-mile out. Eagle River has a good beach. Check out the shoreline viewer. Hard to believe this used to be a boom town.
Not typically this calm... and I feel like a frog.
Getting to Eagle River is easy. Take US-41 North from Houghton some 25 or so miles until Phoenix, then take M-26 West a few miles to Eagle River. Alternatively, take the 5-Mile Point road West from Ahmeek, just 15 miles North of Houghton. This road follows more of the shoreline.