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Keweenaw Point Trail Ride

Mountain Biking Trail

Moderate
24.49 mi
1,525 ft
A fantastic cross-country singletrack trail leads to the very tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula.

The town of Copper Harbor lies at the northern end of the Keweenaw Peninsula, which itself is an outcropping off of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. If you look at it on FATMAP, you'll notice that as a result, Copper Harbor is almost entirely surrounded by water!

Being located at the end of a peninsula off of a peninsula means that Copper Harbor is literally at the end of the road: US Highway 41 ends just a couple miles beyond downtown Copper Harbor, near Fort Wilkins Historic State Park. However, you still won't have quite reached the very, very tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula just yet. After that pavement ends, you have two choices to reach Keweenaw Point: a rocky, rutted-out 4x4 road or a new singletrack trail.

The newest trail development in Copper Harbor is taking place east of downtown in the wild forest between town and Keweenaw Point. The newest tech trails in the region are found on East Bluff, but several natural-style cross country trails are also being built. The Keweenaw Point Trail, shown here, was the initial XC build in this area, leading to the popular destination on the very end of the point.

The route shown here begins in downtown Copper Harbor, connecting several sections of the Keweenaw Point Trail together for a great out-and-back cross country ride. The singletrack itself doesn't have any dramatic technical obstacles, but it also isn't a buffed out machine-built trail either. Yes, you'll find a couple of berms in some of the corners, but you'll also have to negotiate small rock gardens, splash through a few stream crossings, and rattle over root webs. Simply put, the Keweenaw Point Trail rides like the cross country mountain bike trails of yore... *only better*.

If you keep your eyes peeled, you can spot a commemorative plaque for the Keweenaw Rocket Range, an isolated launch pad that was used by NASA and the University of Michigan "between 1964 and 1971 for launching rockets for meteorological data collection," [according to Wikipedia](

The end goal of pedaling this trail is the beautiful vista of mighty Lake Superior that seemingly overwhelms and surrounds you, its cold blue waters and omnipresent wind providing a truly visceral experience.

Once done enjoying the views from the Point, you can either return the way you came, or you can take the gravel road back for a more direct route. Be warned, though: just because it's a gravel road does not mean it's easier! The road is, if anything, steeper and rockier than the singletrack trail. Written by Greg Heil
Created By
Strava Routes

Route and Elevation

Segments

NameDistanceElev. Diff.Avg. Grade
Keweenaw pt. North2.78 mi-128 ft-0.2%
ETK '21 Keweenaw Point Trail1.34 mi-92 ft-1.3%
Trails Fest XC climb 13.12 mi279 ft1.7%
KTP: Summer School Climb0.92 mi194 ft3.1%
Summer School Full Season1.91 mi167 ft1.5%
? Trail1.36 mi75 ft0.5%
point trail phase 2 5.75 mi-367 ft-1.1%
Negative derivative 2.80 mi-256 ft-1.7%
Trailhead to First Beach5.65 mi-351 ft-1.2%
Its cold out there5.55 mi341 ft1.1%
Phase 2 home5.14 mi312 ft1.0%
Point Trail (Point to Mandan Rd)5.75 mi308 ft0.7%
Positive derivative2.82 mi266 ft1.7%
Reverse ? Trail1.38 mi-75 ft-0.5%
KPT: Summer School Descent0.93 mi-197 ft-3.1%
ETK '21 Summer School0.89 mi-180 ft-3.8%
Point Trail East to West2.70 mi135 ft0.2%
Keweenaw pt. South2.32 mi131 ft0.7%
KPT: From East Bluff Connector to Manganese2.61 mi98 ft0.3%
Manganese road return!0.57 mi-69 ft-2.1%