Isle Royale Hub

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Isle Royale Hub Adventures, stories, photos, and reels from Isle Royale National Park & beyond. Follow for: Isle Royale, lighthouses, freighters, Upper Peninsula.

Run by twin brothers Rob & Ray — photographers, videographers, and year-round Michigan explorers.

🌌 When the sun goes down, Isle Royale puts on a whole different show!Ray captured these beautiful nighttime scenes on Be...
10/25/2026

🌌 When the sun goes down, Isle Royale puts on a whole different show!

Ray captured these beautiful nighttime scenes on Belle Isle during a few days off, August 27th and into the early morning hours of August 28th.

Star trails, a sky full of stars, partial eclipse, moonlit shorelines, and the kind of peace and quiet that's hard to find anywhere else.

One of the best things about Isle Royale is that the scenery doesn't stop being spectacular when the sun goes down!

Which photo is your favorite?

📸 Photos by Ray

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5,000 years ago, I'd have been standing underwater! 🌊Here's a pretty cool 360° shot of me exploring Amygdaloid Arch on I...
10/24/2026

5,000 years ago, I'd have been standing underwater! 🌊

Here's a pretty cool 360° shot of me exploring Amygdaloid Arch on Isle Royale's north shore.

Hard to believe, but around 5,000 years ago, this spot was right along the shoreline of ancient Lake Nipissing, when water levels were roughly 40–60 feet higher than today's Lake Superior!

Waves crashing against the rock gradually carved out this arch. Today it's high and dry, surrounded by forest. Pretty wild to think about waves pounding through this very spot thousands of years ago!

Just another one of those places on Isle Royale that makes you appreciate how much this island has changed over time.

Have you ever made the hike to Amygdaloid Arch?

**EDIT — A little geological clarification:** According to the National Park Service, Amygdaloid Arch was carved by waves during the Lake Nipissing stage roughly 5,000 years ago. Ancient shoreline features from that period now sit approximately 40–60 feet above Lake Superior.

But that doesn't necessarily mean the lake itself was 40–60 feet higher back then. Isle Royale has been gradually rising since the glaciers retreated, a process called postglacial rebound. In fact, the NPS Natural History Handbook states that the island continues to rise at a rate of a foot or more per century!

Pretty amazing to think the island is still recovering from the weight of glaciers that disappeared thousands of years ago. Thanks to Scott McWilliam for getting me to dig a little deeper into the geology behind this fascinating place!

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Isle Royale: Beyond the Season — September 24, 2026A Stop at Indian PointOn September 24, Ray and I made a stop at India...
10/23/2026

Isle Royale: Beyond the Season — September 24, 2026
A Stop at Indian Point

On September 24, Ray and I made a stop at Indian Point, just across from Birch Island near the entrance to McCargoe Cove. We beached the Lund and spent some time exploring the area.

There's quite a bit of history packed into this little stretch of shoreline.

Indian Point was once an Indigenous settlement. Archaeologists have found artifacts dating back to the 1700s, including glass trade beads, gunflints, gun parts, and iron hardware.

Just across the water on Birch Island was a commercial fishery operated by Captain Robert Francis. In 1926, he sold it to Jack Linklater and his wife Helen, who were among the last Indigenous residents to live and work on Isle Royale.

I included an old photograph of the Birch Island Fishery from the 1930s. Pretty interesting to see what the place looked like nearly 100 years ago.

It's pretty neat to visit these places and learn a little about the people who called them home. Makes you wonder what else is out there that most of us cruise right past.

Anyone else ever stop and explore Indian Point?

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Historic photo: Warren/Anderson Collection, Isle Royale National Park.

Isle Royale After the Season — Day 2September 25, 2026 | Birch Island & McCargoe CoveA northern pike pushing 40 inches, ...
10/22/2026

Isle Royale After the Season — Day 2
September 25, 2026 | Birch Island & McCargoe Cove

A northern pike pushing 40 inches, some beautiful steelhead, and an evening with good friends. Day 2 of our adventure turned out to be another memorable one!

Ray and I started the morning fishing the calm waters of Brady Cove. A light mist hung over the harbor, with occasional misty rain moving through. The fishing didn't disappoint! Ray hooked into a northern pike pushing 40 inches, and we actually had it in the net before the big fish broke right through and made its escape. That's one way to avoid getting your picture taken!

We caught and released several more pike before the rain picked up enough to send us back to Birch Island for a pancake breakfast.

Later, we headed out to explore more of McCargoe Cove and try our luck trolling near the entrance. That turned into a productive 45 minutes of fishing, with two beautiful steelhead and a lake trout headed to the frying pan. We caught them in the usual manner, trolling spoons on lead-core line, 180 feet out, 2.5mph troll speed. We started out right at the green bouy and had a steelhead on before we even got the second line in the water.

We were also looking forward to meeting up with our friends Justin and Lacey, who were enjoying a final family trip around the island aboard the Hazy J with Hazel and Stanley. They'd spent the previous night on the south side of the island before making their way north to join us.

After catching up, we all headed back into Brady Cove for another shot at the pike. The fish weren't interested this time, but spending time on the water with good friends is never a wasted afternoon.

Back at Birch Island, we wrapped up the day with a little Isle Royale surf and turf—fresh steelhead, steak expertly prepared by Justin, and potatoes. Not too shabby for a couple of guys camping on a remote island!

Good fishing, great company, and another day of making memories. That's what these post-season adventures are all about!

👉 Follow Isle Royale Hub as Ray and I continue sharing the photos, fishing, wildlife, and stories from our journey around the island.

10/21/2026

Isle Royale: Beyond the Season — September 24, 2026

🎬 Here's a little sneak peek at what's coming!

I threw together this quick 1-minute, 24-second highlight reel from September 24, the first day of our post-season adventure I'm sharing in this series.

Just a mashup of clips from the day to give you a taste of what's coming once I get around to editing all the footage into longer videos.

We've got plenty of video from our adventures, and I'm looking forward to putting it all together and sharing more of the places we explored, the fishing, wildlife, and everything else along the way.

This is just the appetizer. The main course is still in the editing room! 😂

👉 Follow Isle Royale Hub so you don't miss the longer videos when they start rolling out!

Isle Royale After the Season — Day 1September 24, 2026 | Rock Harbor to Birch IslandAfter another memorable summer on Is...
10/20/2026

Isle Royale After the Season — Day 1
September 24, 2026 | Rock Harbor to Birch Island

After another memorable summer on Isle Royale, Ray and I were ready to begin our three-week adventure around the island!

We'd actually finished working on September 12, a little earlier than expected. Windy weather had kept the marina quiet, allowing us to get the boats pulled and our closing work finished ahead of schedule.

We spent the next week and a half camping at Birch Island, Tookers Island, Chippewa Harbor, and Caribou Island, fishing and exploring along the way. I'll be sharing photos from those days throughout the week, including our first Isle Royale walleye catches while shore fishing at Whittlesey Lake!

September 24 began with a beautiful orange-red sunrise at Merritt Lane, followed by a trip into Rock Harbor for our final supplies and goodbyes.

One thing about working a seasonal job in a remote place like Isle Royale is the friendships you build. You live and work alongside the same people all summer, sharing experiences you just don't get at most jobs. I've never been much for goodbyes, and I don't always show it, but it's always sad watching everyone head home at the end of the season.

Our plan was to make our way around the west end of the island, but the weather would determine whether we took the north or south shore. With south and southeast winds prevailing over the next several days, conditions lined up nicely for us to start along the north shore.

With Knot Reel loaded down with camping gear, food, and nearly 28 gallons of fuel, we headed to Birch Island, unloaded our gear, and got settled in.

Then it was off to nearby Brady Cove, where Ray landed three northern pike, the biggest measuring 34 inches.

We also explored Indian Point and the eastern shoreline near the entrance to McCargoe Cove, an area with a long history of Indigenous occupation. Unfortunately, we found plenty of trash washed ashore along that eastern shoreline and spent a few hours collecting what we could.

Later, we trolled the north shore and picked up two lake trout for dinner. Fresh fish, potatoes and onions, and a quiet evening at Birch Island. Doesn't get much better!

Day 1 of our three-week journey was in the books!

Follow Isle Royale Hub for the photos, videos, wildlife, fishing, and stories from our post-season adventures!

10/18/2026

A little snack in the woods! 🫎

Ray came across this beautiful bull moose near Moose Lake on one of his days off, munching on lichen growing on the trees.

Fun fact: Lichens do provide some nutrients, but they're generally not high on a moose's preferred menu. Moose typically favor leaves, twigs, and aquatic plants.

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