The most lasting marks of human activity left on the islands are the area's seven lighthouses built to guide commercial shipping traffic through or around the islands. Now automated and no longer tended by lightkeepers, the lighthouses are staffed by volunteers who give tours from June through August. The lighthouse at Sand Island is one of the most accessible, although the rock shelf along the shore makes landing difficult in anything but the calmest weather. However, it's only a 45-minute walk from other beaches on the island. Michigan Island is worth a visit to see not one, but two lighthouses on the same spot. The older lighthouse, built in 1857, was intended for Long Island, but builders were confused about where they were, and built the lighthouse on Michigan Island instead, before the mistake was discovered. The old light was too low and was soon obscured by trees. Eventually, an entire lighthouse from the Delaware River was disassembled and transported to Michigan Island, where it now dwarfs the older whitewashed lighthouse.
Sudden changes in weather and the ferocity of its fall gales have earned Superior a reputation as a capricious and dangerous entity that should be respected and never taken for granted. Waves on Lake Superior may not reach the size of those on the open oceans, but waves up to 30 feet in height have been recorded in the worst storms. The most common wave patterns are steep seas with a short distance between crests, a combination that has caused some ships to simply break apart at the seams. More than 27 shipwrecks around the Bayfield Peninsula attest to the very real dangers that early mariners faced.
Some of the shipwrecks around the park are visible from the surface. The large steamer Fedora lies just north of the Red Cliff marina, only a hundred feet offshore. In Red Cliff Bay, another half-hour's paddle north, the wreck of the City of Ashland and two other ships can be seen. The remains of a barge are located just off the beach in Julian Bay, on Stockton Island. Although you can see it clearly on a sunny, calm day, a diving mask will improve the view. When visiting these wrecks, beware of sharp metal ribs just below the surface.
The sea caves, shipwrecks and lighthouses are some of the reasons we return again and again to the islands, but the little things continue to fascinate too. The passing of seasons and years bring a change of scenery as storms and weather rearrange the beaches, hide or reveal shipwrecks, continue to carve the sandstone cliffs and sea caves, and slowly collapse the abandoned homes and camps. The islands have many small secrets that we haven't exhausted yet: a miniature stone village built for a child, now turned mossy and eerie; the lovingly tended memorial for a Vietnam vet; a tree decorated with ascending pairs of old shoes. Every winter, the howling, bitter winds, grinding ice, and drifting snow scour the islands and slowly alter the landscape. But each spring transforms them back into a kayaker's dream of clear, fresh water, warm sand beaches, verdant forests, and mysterious sea caves.

Rick Wright is a long-time kayaker and teacher living in Minneapolis. He paddles with his wife and daughter, who share his love of kayaking and Lake Superior. Sarah Ohmann works in plant biology research at the University of Minnesota, and is co-author of the books Guide to Sea Kayaking Lakes Superior and Michigan and Guide to Sea Kayaking Lakes Huron, Erie, and Ontario, 1999.