It is Fall Foliage Time In Michigan
The colors in the Upper Peninsula in the fall will be well worth the trip to see. There are nine different areas that are suggested. The first is a trip of 105 miles from Hancock to Lake Linden, on to Lac La Belle, Bete Grise and then to Copper Harbor. Leave Copper Harbor and go to Eagle River and on to Calument and Laurium and back to Hancock. The route covers Mackinac County with the peak color expected in mid-October, Chippewa County with the peak color expected the first two weeks of October, Luce County with peak color expected the first two weeks of October and Schoolcraft County with the peak color also being the first two weeks in October. This is called the Eastern Upper Peninsula tour.
Jumping over to central Upper Peninsula will allow you to take highway 107 to 64 with your tour beginning at Silver City and then to Ontonagon, keep going to highway 45 and Rockland and Victoria. Going back just a bit to highway 26 you will go to Greenland and then take highway 38 to Baraga. Turning onto highway 41 to Chassel and Houghton you will see beautiful colors. Now take highway 26 to Twin Lakes and return to Greenland. Enjoy the 200 miles of this tour with its peak season the first week of October and on for approximately 3 weeks.
The Western Upper Peninsula takes highway 2 from Ironwood and Wakefield to Watersmeet, Iron River, Crystal Falls where you go on highway 141 to Covington then highway 28 to Bruce Crossing and back to Wakefield. This trip is 220 miles. Counties included are Iron with peak color the last week of September and the first week in October, Baraga with peak being the first week in October, Houghton & Keweenaw with the last week in September or first week in October and Gogebic and Ontonagon with peak color expected the last week in September and the first week in October.
The fourth option is to start in Ishpeming on highway 29, go to highway 510 to Nagaunee and Big Bay, then 550 to Marquette and 28 to Munising, where you can take highway H 58 to H 15 to Singleton and highway 28 to Highway 94 to Chatham, Gwinn and then 35 to Palmer and back to Ishpeming. This trip is 165 miles.
Tour 5 is a little shorter than the others. It begins at Iron Mountain and Norway on Hwy 2 to Spalding and change to hwy 41 to Menominee and then hwy 35 to Cedar River and Escanaba. For 125 miles you will see a wide array of beautiful trees with splendid coloring.
The sixth option is from Esdcanaba on hwy 2/41 to Rapid River then hwy 2 to Manistique and Saint Ignace. This is 183 but in a rather straight line.
Try tour 7 which starts at Whitefish Point and goes on to Paradise on hwy 123. Newberry is next on highway 28. Now go to Seney and take hwy 77 to grand Marais and H58 to Deer Park and back to highway 123 and Paradise. This route is 150 miles in length.
The 8th tour begins at Saint Ingace which is on hwy 75 and goes on to Kincheloe and Sault St. Marie. Then drop down to highway 129 and Pickford where you will take hwy 48 to Goetzville and De Tour Village getting on 134 to Cedarville and then back to Saint Ignace. 150 miles of foliage to enjoy.
The last suggested tour is number 9 where you start off highway 28 and join highway 123 and begin at Eckerman. Take 123 north to Paradise and then go back to the intersection to turn toward Curley Lewis Scenic Highway. Stay on Curley Lewis Scenic Highway to Bay Mills and Brimley. This is the shortest of the tours at just 90 miles.