The Greenstone Ridge Trail is a

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trail on

Isle Royale Isle Royale (, ) is an Islands of the Great Lakes, island of the Great Lakes located in the northwest of Lake Superior and part of the U.S. state of Michigan. The island and the 450 surrounding smaller islands and waters make up Isle Royale Na ...

, in

Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...

, northern

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. The island is within

Isle Royale National Park Isle Royale National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States consisting of Isle Royale, along with more than 400 small adjacent islands and the surrounding waters of Lake Superior, in Michigan. ...

. There are no roads on the island, a

wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural) are Earth's natural environments that have not been significantly modified by human activity, or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally ...

and national park, so the trail doubles as the primary means of land transportation across the island.

Route

The trail extends from Windigo Harbor and the Windigo Ranger Station on the island's western end, east across Isle Royale, to Rock Harbor and the Rock Harbor Lodge. The Greenstone Ridge Trail generally follows the top of ''Greenstone Ridge'', a low

ridge A ridge is a long, narrow, elevated geomorphologic landform, structural feature, or a combination of both separated from the surrounding terrain by steep sides. The sides of a ridge slope away from a narrow top, the crest or ridgecrest, wi ...

that forms the east/west spine of the island and surmounts

Mount Desor Mount Desor is the tallest mountain within Isle Royale National Park. Located on Isle Royale in Lake Superior and with an elevation of , it is the third highest peak on the lake. The Greenstone Ridge Trail crosses the summit of Mount Desor as ...

, the highest point of Isle Royale. Hikers may appreciate the higher elevations as they can reduce biting

mosquito Mosquitoes, the Culicidae, are a Family (biology), family of small Diptera, flies consisting of 3,600 species. The word ''mosquito'' (formed by ''Musca (fly), mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish and Portuguese for ''little fly''. Mos ...

es, which are found in great numbers in the lower elevation

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

Natural history

Hikers may see signs of the wolves and moose on Isle Royale; although scarce and shy, the woodlands that adjoin the trail are their habitat. The Greenstone Ridge and its Trail are both named after

Chlorastrolite Chlorastrolite, also known as Isle Royale Greenstone, is a green or bluish green stone.Arguably the rarest gemstone in the world and one of the most valuable American gemstones. The gem quality specimens are typically found on Isle Royale, a large ...

(Greenstone), a local semiprecious stone that is the

state gem Leaders of states in the U.S. which have significant mineral deposits often create a state mineral, rock, stone or gemstone to promote interest in their natural resources, history, tourism, etc. Not every state has an official state mineral, rock, ...

of the U.S. state of

. Greenstone can be seen in various locations on Isle Royale, including shoreline pebbles.

References

{{MichiganTrails Hiking trails in Michigan Isle Royale

Route

Natural history

See also

References