Copper Harbor Lighthouse – Michigan

The Copper Harbor Lighthouse is a picturesque lighthouse on the shores of Lake Superior in the Keweenaw Peninsula on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It makes a great stop on a Michigan Keweenaw Peninsula road trip.

Copper Harbor Lighthouse Location:

The lighthouse itself is inaccessible via road (the road leading to the lighthouse is closed to the public). For the best view, you’ll want to park in the Astor Shipwreck Park parking lot, and then walk down a short path to the beach. Here, you’ll find amazing views of the Copper Harbor Lighthouse, as well as a rocky beach with pretty views of Lake Superior.

Quick History of the Copper Harbor Lighthouse

Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula is a remote area that’s part of the larger Upper Peninsula (or UP) in Michigan and in the 1800s, large deposits of copper were found in the area. Mines were setup all over the peninsula, resulting in lots of ship traffic to export the minerals to other markets. Two lighthouses were deemed necessary to guide the ships in this section of the peninsula – the Copper Harbor Front Range Lighthouse and the Copper Harbor Lighthouse.

The Copper Harbor Front Range lighthouse is just a steel tower and although served an important purpose, isn’t very photogenic. The Copper Harbor Lighthouse is the more photo-friendly structure.

Copper Harbor Lighthouse does sit on state park property; it’s part of the Fort Wilkens State Park. At one point, tours were allowed inside the lighthouse, however, the access road leading to the lighthouse is now private property, and no public tours or acces is available.

But if you’re just looking to photograph the lighthouse, it’s no problem. When I visit lighthouses, I don’t bother with tours anymore, as I’ve done enough of them to know that they all basically look the same in the inside, and the good photo shots are of the lighthouse itself, from a distance.

Copper Harbor Lighthouse – Final Thoughts

Pros:

• Pretty, picturesque lighthouse on Lake Superior
• Easily visible from Astor Shipwreck Park but to get the best photos, you’ll want to bring a zoom lens.
• Interesting bay from which to photograph the lighthouse – lots of interesting elements to include in your foreground when photographing the lighthouse.

Cons

• If you enjoy touring inside lighthouses and like getting right up close, you’ll be disappointed as Copper Range Lighthouse is inaccessible to the public.