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Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Mineral-streaked sandstone cliffs on Lake Superior, the first national lakeshore
The cliffs of Pictured Rocks look painted, and in a sense they are. Groundwater seeping through the sandstone carries dissolved minerals that streak the rock face in color — red and orange from iron, blue-green from copper, black from manganese, and yellow-brown from limonite. The cliffs rise as much as 200 feet (60 m) straight out of Lake Superior along Michigan's Upper Peninsula, carved by waves into arches, caves and turrets such as Miners Castle and Chapel Rock. Congress made this the first national lakeshore in the country on October 15, 1966.
The lakeshore covers about 73,000 acres (296 km²) and runs more than 40 miles (64 km) east from Munising. Beyond the cliffs lie Twelvemile Beach, waterfalls such as Munising and Mosquito falls, and the Grand Sable Dunes, which rise about 275 feet (85 m) above the lake at the eastern end. The rock is always changing. In April 2006 one of Miners Castle's two turrets collapsed into the lake, and freeze-thaw cycles bring down slabs of cliff every spring and fall. Most visitors see the colors from tour boats or kayaks, while winter brings frozen waterfalls and ice climbers.