During the fall of 2016, we journeyed to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) for the second time in a year. In late spring we had explored the western side of the peninsula on our way to Isle Royale National Park. During fall we took day trips through the eastern portion of the UP from our base in Sault Ste. Marie.

Michigan’s UP – bordered on the north by Lake Superior and south by northern Wisconsin, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron – is an isolated land of lighthouses, hardwood forests, rugged shorelines and mom-and-pop motels. With a land area of 16,000 square miles, the peninsula is larger than nine individual states, but serves as home to only 311,000 individuals, approximately 3 percent of Michigan’s population.

Fall is an excellent season for a visit to the UP. The majority of tourists have returned south at a time when brilliant colors decorate the trees. Outdoor activities remain plentiful for hikers, fishermen, boaters, campers and nature lovers in a beautiful and largely unspoiled land. If you go, don’t forget to sample the Yoopers’ favorite menu item, the pasty.

Here are five of our favorites in the eastern UP.

Soo Locks – In this stretch of rapids that connect Lake Superior with the rivers and lakes to the east, a series of locks allow ships to be raised or lowered before continuing on their way. We found it fascinating to watch huge vessels hauling ore and grain shuttle through the locking system on the St. Marys River. Ships creep into the locks and tie up before the water level is adjusted to allow a continuation of their journey. A Corps of Engineers visitor center offers exhibits on the history and functioning of the locks. A listing of ships scheduled for arrival, plus a screen showing the location of nearby ships are available for viewing. A three-story covered observation platform allows excellent views of ships entering and departing the locks.

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore – One of America’s four national lakeshores administered by the National Park Service, Pictured Rocks boasts one of our country’s most picturesque shorelines. From mineral-stained sandstone cliffs in the park’s western section to huge sand dunes in the east, the lakeshore is a work of art. Concessionaire-operated cruise boats depart daily between Memorial Day to mid-October from the town of Munising. Short hikes in the lakeshore’s eastern section provide access to beautiful, rock-strewn beaches and huge rolling sand dunes. A paved road through much of the park allows access to lakes, waterfalls, dunes, cliffs and hiking trails.

Tahquamenon Falls State Park – Fifty-foot Upper Falls in this Michigan state park is among the most impressive we have visited. While the highest flow rates occur during the spring snowmelt, recent rains produced a roaring waterfall for our September visit. An eye-catching feature of the 200-foot-wide falls is the water’s amber tint after spilling over the lip. The coloring results from tannins leached from spruce, cedar and hemlock trees in the nearly 800-squre-mile watershed feeding the Tahquamenon River. Smaller waterfalls are downstream, but the Upper Falls is the big draw here. For those with a literary interest, the state park is in the land where Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s Hiawatha built his canoe. The park includes a lodge, restaurant and modern campgrounds and is about 55 miles west of Sault Ste. Marie.

Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum – This interesting living history exhibit is at Whitefish Point, about 75 miles northwest of Sault Ste. Marie. In addition to the museum and its exhibits, visitors can investigate a restored 1861 light station, a former U.S. Coast Guard lifeboat station, a fog signal station, a U.S. Navy radio building that serves as a theater, and the former U.S. Coast Guard Crews Quarters now operated as a bed and breakfast. Museum exhibits concentrate on Lake Superior shipwrecks, the most famous of which was the Edmund Fitzgerald. The bell of the Great Lakes’ freighter that in 1975 sank 17 miles off Whitefish Point is a museum exhibit.

The Mackinac Bridge – The five-mile Mackinac Bridge is a work of art and eastern UPs lifeline to the rest of the country. A bridge over the Straits of Mackinac had been an ongoing dream of UP residents since the 1800s. Financing and construction was finally authorized by the state legislature in 1952 and the bridge opened to traffic on November 1, 1957. It is the fifth longest suspension bridge in the world and includes 42,000 miles of wire in its main cables. In addition to being an engineering marvel, it is a beautiful structure that brings a smile and sense of awe to nearly everyone who views it.