Beaver Island
Beaver Island, Michigan
Beaver Island, MI
The largest island in Lake Michigan, a remote place of harbors, lighthouses, and Irish roots, wrapped in dark water that keeps the night sky wonderfully black.
Beaver Island is the largest island in Lake Michigan, a wild and unhurried place set far out in the lake with the mainland only a distant line on the horizon. You reach it by ferry or a small plane from the town of Charlevoix, and stepping off feels like stepping back to a slower time. There are beaches and inland lakes, quiet roads good for biking, two old lighthouses, and a harbor village called St. James that has watched boats come and go for well over a century.
Because the island floats in the middle of all that dark water, its night sky is exceptional, and it became Michigan's first certified Dark Sky Sanctuary. Stargazers rate darkness on a scale from 1 to 9 called the Bortle scale, where a bright city is a 9 and the darkest skies are the lowest numbers. On a clear summer night here the Milky Way, the glowing band of our own galaxy, is easy to see with the naked eye, and lucky visitors sometimes even catch the northern lights shimmering over the lake.
What Guests Love
- Michigan's first Dark Sky Sanctuary, with the Milky Way visible on clear summer nights
- The remote, unhurried feel of a real island you can only reach by boat or small plane
- Two historic lighthouses and one of the finest natural harbors in the Great Lakes
- The island's colorful history, from a self-crowned king to its deep Irish roots
Worth Knowing
- The island is reached only by ferry or small plane from Charlevoix, so plan travel ahead
- The ferry runs across open water and can be affected by weather; check schedules before you go
- This is a remote island with limited services, so come prepared and pack what you may need
- Late spring through fall is the easiest time to visit, when the ferry runs its full season
Details
Beaver Island, MI
Learn about Beaver Island
The island of a self-crowned king
Beaver Island holds one of the strangest stories in American history. In the 1840s a religious leader named James Jesse Strang led a group of followers to the island and built a colony. In 1850 he had himself crowned king, ruling his followers from St. James, which he named after himself. For a few years the island was, in effect, a small kingdom in the middle of Lake Michigan.
The kingdom did not last. Strang's rule brought conflict with his neighbors and with the mainland, and he was assassinated in 1856, after which his colony scattered. What came next shaped the island far longer, as Irish Catholic fishing families moved in to work the rich waters. So many came from County Donegal in Ireland that the island earned the nickname America's Emerald Isle, a heritage it celebrates to this day.
How the island was made
Beaver Island is a product of the Ice Age. The same great glaciers that carved out the basins of the Great Lakes ground across this region and, as they melted away, left behind ridges of rock and gravel. The island is really a high point of tougher stone, limestone and dolomite laid down when this land lay beneath an ancient sea, that stood up above the surrounding water once the glaciers were gone.
The result is a low, green island with sandy and stony beaches, forests, and a scattering of inland lakes tucked among the trees. It anchors a small family of islands, and the smaller ones nearby serve as quiet refuges where great numbers of birds nest and rest, undisturbed by people.
Lighthouses, harbors, and quiet roads
For a small island there is a lot to see. Two historic lighthouses stand watch, one at Whiskey Point guarding the entrance to St. James Harbor and another, the Beaver Head Lighthouse, at the island's south end, where visitors can climb the tower for a view over the lake. A popular long bike ride runs the length of the island to reach it.
The harbor at St. James is one of the finest natural harbors in all the Great Lakes, sheltering boats and drawing swimmers, kayakers, and sailors. Small museums in the village tell the island's long story, from its Native American beginnings through the kingdom years to the Irish fishing town it became. Everywhere the pace is gentle, the roads are quiet, and the water is never far away.
Charlevoix and the mainland shore
The gateway to Beaver Island is Charlevoix, a charming resort town on the Lake Michigan shore where the ferry departs. Its walkable downtown, shops, and famous drawbridge make it a fine place to spend time before or after the crossing, and it is where most island trips begin and end.
The mainland here is some of the prettiest country in Michigan. Just outside Charlevoix, Fisherman's Island State Park protects miles of undeveloped shoreline and dunes, a favorite for hunting the beloved Petoskey stone. A little farther on lies Petoskey itself, a historic town on Little Traverse Bay known for its old Gaslight District and its stone-strewn beaches.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Charlevoix
Charlevoix
About 32 miles across the water
The mainland resort town where the ferry departs, with a walkable downtown, shops, dining, and a landmark drawbridge.
Fisherman's Island State Park
About 4 miles from Charlevoix
A large lakeshore park with miles of undeveloped Lake Michigan beach and dunes, a favorite spot to hunt for Petoskey stones.
Petoskey
About 20 miles from Charlevoix
A historic town on Little Traverse Bay known for its Gaslight District shopping and its stone-strewn beaches.