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The Old Presque Isle Lighthouse
The New Presque Isle Lighthouse
Presque Isle State Harbor
Three trails can be hiked, ranging from 1.4 to 2.6 miles and covering
7.5 miles of Lake Huron Shoreline. Park at the trailhead off of U.S.
23, about 3 miles north of County Road 638.
Beautiful Grand Lake
The Besser Natural Area is home to one of Michigan's last few stands of Virgin Pine. A one mile foot trail can be hiked in this area formerly inhabited by the people of the Village of Bell, and some remains of the original buildings can be found. This beautiful area also includes a lagoon and a beach on Lake Huron.
Presque Isle Harbor Wooden Boat Show
It is always held on the third Saturday in June.
The Emily Min Hunt Nature Preserve
Grand Lake Branch Library 8797 E Grand Lake Rd | PO Box 40 Presque Isle MI 49777
E. Grand Lake Road: Five historical sites line this scenic route with vistas of Lake
Huron and Grand Lake. This is great riding through rolling hills and
woods. The historical sites along E. Grand Lake Road include the Presque
Isle Lodge, Kauffman Homestead, Burnham’s Landing, the Old Presque
Isle Light, and the New Presque Isle Light. Huron Sunrise Trail: http://www.rogerscitychamber.com/huronsunrisetrail2.pdf A 25 minute drive north is Rogers City. The bike path begins in the
city. Travel on a paved surface north along Lake Huron through wooded
meadows over wooden bridges and water tributaries to Hoeft State Park
and along sandy beaches. http://www.alpenacounty.org/maps/Bi-Path%20Map.pdf Go south 18 minutes to the Wild Life Sanctuary located in Alpena.
Park and hike the mile trail of the Sanctuary Island for great bird
and wild life viewing before you begin your bike trip. Swans, ducks,
otters and turtles are frequent visitors. Choose from 3 – 5
– 12 – 20 miles of paved surface along the scenic Thunder
Bay River. |
This
lighthouse, built in 1840, was the first lighthouse in Presque Isle.
In 1861, Patrick Garrity was named lightkeeper by President Abraham
Lincoln. 
This
lighthouse, built in 1870 by Orlando M. Poe, is one of three Great
Lakes towers built from the same plans. It replaced the smaller 1840
harbor light. The conical brick tower rises 113 feet from a limestone
foundation. The Third Order Fresnel lens was make by Henre LePaute
of Paris. Patrick Garrity, the keeper of the harbor light, lit the
lamp for the first time at the opening of the 1871 navigation season.
Garrity
served here until 1885 when he became keeper of the Harbor Range Lights.
His wife, Mary, sons Thomas, Patrick, and John, and daughter Anna
all served as light keepers in this area. In 1890 a steam operated
fog signal manufactured by Variety Iron Works of Cleveland, Ohio,
was installed. The light was automated in 1970 by the U.S. Coast Guard.
Thompson's
Harbor is a Michigan State Park that encompasses over 5000 acres of
undeveloped beach dunes, upland and marsh. It includes unique areas
of Lake Huron Sand Dunes and is home to the Dwarf Lake Iris, a rare
and endangered plant. 
John
C. Kauffman migrated to America from Tuttlingen, Germany in 1851.
Kauffman started as a lumberjack and built a house in 1862 in an area
he had cleared. Later that year he had to move his house because of
the drifting snow. Kauffman was the Township Supervisor and Postmaster
of Presque Isle until his death in 1913. Kauffman also served in the
Civil War. 
Frederick
Burnham settled in Michigan in the 1840's. Beginning in the 1850's,
the Burnhams acquired large tracts of Presque Isle County's rich timberlands.
Among their holdings was the land purchased in 1868 by the U.S. government,
where the Presque Isle Harbor Range Lights were constructed. In the
mid-to-late nineteenth century Burnham developed a prosperous mercantile
and lumber business here. He transported wood to the boat landing,
which stood near this site. The harbor, known as Burnham's Landing,
provided shelter to ships during foul weather. When Burnham died in
1880, Julia and their son Frederick II assumed management of the family's
business. The Burnham home, store and lumber camps were destroyed
by the 1908 Metz fire. 
The
Presque Isle Harbor Wooden Boat show’s mission statement is:
“To provide citizens of the area an opportunity to view and
appreciate the beauty and craftsmanship involved in the wooden boat
industry. To combine the pride of ownership on the part of the exhibitors,
with the dedication of the volunteer workers and the scenic beauty
of the functional Presque Isle Harbor. To generate support for the
local community entities and activities”. 
Adeline Sims is reputed to be the only female Mason in Ripley's Believe
it or Not. Her grave with a Masonic emblem is located at the Old Range
Light Park on Presque Isle Harbor. Adeline was the wife of Lighthouse
Keeper William Sims. 
The
Emily Min Hunt Nature Preserve is just 4 miles south of Grand Lake.
It is operated by the Thunder Bay Audubon Society. It is a 438 acre
mixed hardwood preserve which has, at its core, an abandoned apple
orchard with numerous bluebird houses. To get to the Preserve from
the south end of Grand Lake, take US-23 South to Shubert Hwy. Proceed
west (right) 1 3/4 miles to the entrance.
7 miles south of the Lodge are nineteen very large and geologically
interesting sink holes which are two to three hundred feet in diameter
and very deep and very interesting to explore.
Discover the area by bicycle. Some of the best biking in northeast
Michigan can be found along the shores of Grand Lake and Lake Huron
in Presque Isle and the Thunder Bay River near Alpena, Michigan.