Take a detour to discover the road less traveled—you’ll never go back. Not only will you find solitude and adventure, taking a detour often means a more responsible path forward, dispersing our impact by seeking new destinations. Sometimes all it takes is the right guide.
Our feature collection of Detour Guides across the U.S. continues with Emily Gantner in the heart of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Utilizing a Toyota 4Runner, she explores the remote peninsula that shape-shifts with the seasons by launching a sea kayak tour around Grand Island. Gantner guides pro skier and friend Jake Hopfinger to secluded Lake Superior waterfalls and then deeper into the Hiawatha National Forest, which draws a fraction of the crowds of comparable destinations like Acadia National Park, with equally dynamic shorelines. Follow the duo’s multi-sport adventure, then read more of Gantner’s guidance below to nearby adventures. Go deeper with the full video, more Detour Guides presented by Toyota Trucks, plus the trails and the trucks to get you to the wildest corners of our country.
On January mornings, Emily Gantner fires up a snowmobile and rides across frozen Lake Superior to climb 200-foot curtains of ice that coat the same sandstone cliffs and waterfalls she paddles beneath in July. It’s a life built around Superior’s extremes.
Gantner spent nearly a decade guiding for Michigan Ice Fest before joining Superior High Angle Rescue. She knows the Upper Peninsula’s secret: While most people flee when the snow starts falling, winter here transforms the landscape into something extraordinary. More than 300 inches of snow bury the woods, Lake Superior freezes solid, and the waterfalls become climbable sculptures of ice.
But winter is just one of the U.P.’s draws for Gantner. Every season is magical. “I love how it’s different every year,” she says. Few places offer this range: world-class ice climbing, technical sea kayaking, and landscapes that shift so dramatically they feel like different planets depending on when you visit.
Deep into Hiawatha National Forest
Paddle
Miners Beach to Miners Castle
Gantner’s go-to routine: sunrise paddle along Pictured Rocks’ striped cliffs to the iconic Miners Castle overlook (“one of the best places to see the sunrise”), then back for a trail run and lake swim. The short, protected paddling route offers landing options aplenty if conditions change. Up the challenge with the more exposed crossing from Sand Point to Grand Island’s East Channel (shy of one mile).
Ice Climb
Grand Island’s Trout Bay
Michigan’s ice climbing capital offers more than 100 routes, from beginner WI2 pillars to expert WI6 curtains. Michigan Ice Fest Guides can outfit gear and offer instruction. Cross by snowmobile to Grand Island for the area’s tallest ice (up to 200 feet). Peak season runs February through March, “when it’s 25 and sunny and we finally get to climb in the sun,” Gantner says.
Run
Miners Beach to Mosquito Beach
“My favorite trail run of all time,” Gantner says of this 6.5-mile out-and-back on the Lakeshore Trail with forest shade, cliff views, plus the option for a post-run Superior plunge. Start at dawn to have the trail to yourself.
Deeper Detour
Go Wild
Skip the crowded Chapel Loop for this quieter network of trails in Pictured Rocks’ federal wilderness. Short loops lead to hidden overlooks and lakeshore access. “Get on the trail by 6 a.m. and you won’t see a tourist around,” Gantner says.
Read more on Gantner’s tips on how to paddle and experience Lake Superior safely.
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