My son and I spent 3 days and 2 nights hiking the rim trail of Grand Island last week. We drove from Central Illinois to Munising last Wednesday and during the last hour before we got to Munising, we drove through torrential rain. However the rain seemed to break up when it got to Lake Superior and even though it rained at Munising, it did not appear to get the real heavy rain through which we drove. We spent the night in a local hotel and caught the first ferry to the island Thursday morning. The weather was cloudy and overcast with temperatures in the high 50s. Great hiking weather.
We took the West Rim trail and set up camp at Gamefence campsite the first night, did a side hike to Mather Lodge, Echo Lake and collected water to filter. A word of warning to anyone going to Grand Island in the near future. The stairways to Mather Beach on the west side are washed out and closed so there is no beach access from them. You can still access Waterfall Beach and there is a water tap another 1/4 mile south of Waterfall Beach at the Juniper Flats group site. We did find a place about 50 yds south of Mather Lodge where we could scramble down a short, sand ridge to get to Mather Beach and get water there. The lows that evening got into the 40's but our 40 degree quilts were adequate to keep us warm.
The next morning we hiked on north and camped at Preservation Point, a great campsite with a beautiful view of the lake. There is no water easily accessible on the north end except for North Beach, which is about a 2.5 mi round trip hike from Preservation Point but we needed water and had the time to hike there for it. If one is camping at the Gull Point or Preservation Point sites, they might consider carrying an extra 2 liters of water from Mather Beach and you could probably get by until the next day when you will pass North Beach if you continue on the Rim trail. We watched the sun set at our camp and hit the sack. Lows that evening were very comfortable and in the 50s.
We were awakened about 6:00 am the next morning by the ominous rumbling of an approaching thunderstorm. We quickly pulled camp and got packed just before the storm arrived and the rain started. Since it was raining, we decided to go ahead and hit the trail without breakfast and wait for a break in the rain. The thunderstorm blew through but it rained on and off most of the morning. The temperature was rising and when the rains finally quit, it was pretty warm and muggy. The sun came out and it got downright hot, in the 80's, and was extremely humid. Our original plan was to hike the 9 miles from Preservation Point to Driftwood, camp there for the evening, enjoy the beach and hike out the last 3 miles to Williams Landing and the ferry on Sunday morning. However, it was so hot and humid, and with the projected lows for the evening to be in the 70s, we decided it would be too hot to get a good sleep and we went ahead and did the last 3 miles to Williams Landing and caught the 3:00 pm ferry back to the mainland. We drove to Escanaba and got a really nice room and great meal in a hotel there. I think it was a great call. A heads up. There is no reliable water source on the east side of the island until you get to the beach access on the south end or the tap at Murray Bay group camp. There were areas where water was trickling along side the trail and in a pinch you could dig a hole and collect water but if it were drier that may not be available.
Grand Island has some great views and is a wonderful place to hike and camp, IMO. This was my second trip and first with hammocks. I'm sure I'll be returning in the future.
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Originally Posted by Big Flounder
There is a lot more isolation at the north end of the island than there is at the south end. Much less traffic up there from other hikers and mountain bikers.
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