Isle Royale National Park

Isle Royale National Park is an archipelago of more than 400 islands in Lake Superior, and its main island is about 50 miles long and 9 miles wide. Over 99% of its land is designated wilderness. In 2025 it had 29,091 recreation visits, the most of any year since at least 2016, and June to August took 81.7% of them.

The island belongs to Michigan, but two of its four ferries sail from Grand Portage in Minnesota. We read the figures below on 28 October 2026 on the park's own pages and alerts, the ferry and seaplane operators' sites, Rock Harbor Lodge's site and NOAA's normals. The alerts, fees and hours pages were read again on 29 October.

When did Isle Royale close for the winter?

Isle Royale closed on 1 November 2026 and stays shut through 15 April because of extreme winter weather. The closure extends 4.5 miles out into Lake Superior. In the park's last weeks no public boat or plane reached it, and the Park Service said a visit between early October and closing needed a private boat or a private seaplane. Rock Harbor Lodge closed after the night of 11 September, and the seaplane's daily flights ended on 19 September.

The Grand Portage boats' last scheduled trips were day trips to Windigo on 26 and 27 September, and the Queen IV's season ended on 30 September. The park's conditions page, last updated on 30 September, lists the lodge, the store and both visitor centres as closed. Showers, laundry and fuel are closed at both ends of the island, and the lighthouse tower at Rock Harbor is shut.

On 29 October 2026 the park's alerts said boat fuel would be available for emergencies only until 31 October. The conditions page reported high wolf activity at both ends of the island, bull moose possibly in rut, and the Red Rocks Fire as 100% contained. In fall, the Park Service warns, gale-force winds and large waves are common.

When do the 2027 ferries and seaplane really start?

Isle Royale opens on 16 April, but its ferries and seaplane run only from the middle of May until September. In 2025 the park counted 69 visits in April and 9 in October, against 8,929 in August, its busiest month.

The Park Service has already posted the 2027 Ranger III schedule. The ship leaves Houghton for Rock Harbor on Tuesdays and Fridays from 25 May to 10 September 2027. It returns on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 26 May to 11 September. There are no trips to Rock Harbor on 15 June, 2 July, 13 July and 10 August; on three of those days it sails to Windigo instead.

Ranger III reservations open in January 2027, through pay.gov. The Queen IV's operator opens its 2027 bookings in early December 2026, and says this year's summer dates started filling in January. The Grand Portage boats ask travellers to check back for 2027 in late November. Isle Royale Seaplanes is already taking reservations for 23 May to 18 September 2027.

Rock Harbor Lodge's site says 2027 dates are available and takes bookings 366 days ahead, but it prints no season. Requests for 2027 group camping opened on 1 October 2026.

How much is the Isle Royale fee when arrival and departure days both count?

Isle Royale charges $7 per person for every day spent in the park, including the day you arrive and the day you leave. There is no car fee, because no car reaches the island. Children 15 and under are exempt; the same fee page says elsewhere that visitors over 16 need a pass, and the ferry operators charge from age 16.

The park no longer takes cash for entrance fees, only cards. Rock Harbor Lodge and its stores at Rock Harbor and Windigo take both. The fee can be paid in advance on pay.gov, by card, PayPal, Venmo or bank account, or at the Houghton, Rock Harbor or Windigo visitor centres. The receipt is shown to staff on arrival.

The park is not on the 2026 list of eleven parks with a $100 surcharge for non-residents. The park's $60 Season Pass is sold only to US citizens and residents. The $250 non-resident America the Beautiful pass is accepted and waives the fee for the holder and up to three adults. The pass must be shown on the island, because forgotten passes cannot be looked up.

For two adults the $250 pass beats the daily fee only after 18 days on the island. In 2026 two adults paid $364 for a Queen IV day trip, fares and fees together, and $255 for a Sea Hunter III day trip. Out on the Ranger III on a Tuesday and back on Wednesday cost $348, because both days count. Our guide to national park fees for international visitors explains the passes.

Which boat to Isle Royale: Ranger III, Queen IV or the Grand Portage ferries?

Four ferries serve Isle Royale, all for people only. The Park Service says there are no car ferries and strongly recommends reservations, and its staff handle bookings only for their own ship, the Ranger III. One-way crossings take 1½ to 7 hours, depending on the boat and the stop.

The Ranger III is more than 60 years old. Check-in at the park's headquarters in Houghton is at 8:00 a.m. Eastern, the ship sails at 9:00 and reaches Rock Harbor at 3:00 p.m. Parking at the dock is free. There are no one-day round trips, so the ship always means at least one night on the island. A child aged 1 to 15 pays $40, and a cancellation more than three days ahead refunds 85%.

The Queen IV leaves Copper Harbor at 8:00 a.m. and the island at 2:45 p.m., which leaves about three hours ashore. Children 12 and under pay $125 round trip, one-way fares are half price, and parking costs $10 a night. The Queen IV's crossing time has three versions. The park's directions say 3.5 hours and its Queen IV page "a little over three hours", while the operator says about 3 hours 45 minutes.

The Grand Portage boats sail from Minnesota. The Sea Hunter III leaves at 8:30 a.m. Central, reaches Windigo at 10:00 and leaves again at 2:00 p.m., giving four hours on the west end. The Voyageur II circles the island in two days, stopping at some harbours only when a pick-up is arranged. The village of Grand Portage charges for parking, but the operator does not print the amount.

Lake Superior can be flat calm or rough on the way across. Weather can delay or cancel the ferries, and the park warns that delays can last several days.

What does the seaplane from Hubbell cost?

Isle Royale Seaplanes, the park's only seaplane concessioner, flies from a base on Torch Lake at Hubbell to Windigo and Rock Harbor in about 40 minutes. In 2026 it flew every day from 17 May to 19 September, with day trips from 6 June to 12 September.

The fares are printed twice and do not agree. The operator's home page gives $289 one way and $420 for a round trip or a day trip, taxes and fees included. Its pricing page shows that set and another at $396 for one way and round trip, without saying which applies. Confirm the fare before booking.

At $420, a day trip for two adults costs $854 with the entrance fee. Children under 2 who do not occupy a seat fly free. A cancellation 15 or more days ahead is refunded minus 10%, and none closer in. Parking at the base costs $10 a day. Seaplane passengers fill in their own permit at a station on arrival. Fog, storms or wind can delay flights by a few hours or, occasionally, several days.

How do camping permits work across the 36 backcountry campgrounds?

Isle Royale has 36 campgrounds along 165 miles of trail, each with tent sites, a water source and outhouses. Anyone staying overnight in them needs a permit, and campgrounds cannot be reserved. Backpackers usually cover six to eight miles a day.

For a party of one to six the permit is free, though the $7 daily fee still applies. A ranger issues it on the Ranger III or at Windigo or Rock Harbor, and every small-party site is first come, first served.

Groups of seven or more must reserve in advance, pay $25 per non-refundable permit, and are capped at 20 people on the island at once. Boaters get a free overnight permit and are asked to arrange it in advance through the Houghton visitor centre.

From 28 August to 31 October 2026, tent and hammock camping was closed at Three Mile, Daisy Farm, Moskey Basin and Caribou Island campgrounds. The park cited increased human-wildlife interactions and food storage concerns, and the shelters there stayed open. Food storage rules have applied since 1 March 2026, and packs must go in the storage areas at Three Mile and Rock Harbor.

All drinking water in the backcountry must be filtered or treated. Campfires are allowed at only a handful of campgrounds, and fishing needs a Michigan licence. The island's highest point, Mount Desor, stands at 1,394 feet.

Where do you sleep on Isle Royale without a tent?

Rock Harbor Lodge is the only full-service lodging on Isle Royale, and in 2026 it ran from 5 June to 12 September, the last night being 11 September. The park says rooms at the lodge and the Windigo cabins do sell out.

We could not read a nightly rate: the lodge site draws its prices with a script, and the Park Service says it sets them. The Park Service names the concessioner Isle Royale Resorts, while the lodge site's footer names Aramark. Check-in is at 4:00 p.m. and check-out at 10:30 a.m.

Rock Harbor also has the Greenstone Grill, a dining room, the Dockside Store with groceries and stove fuel, and a marina that rents boats, canoes and kayaks. Wi-Fi reaches only the Guest House lobby, not the rooms. In spring and fall, the park warns, stores and visitor centres may not have what you need.

How many wolves and moose are on Isle Royale in 2026?

Isle Royale had 37 wolves and 524 moose in the Park Service's 2026 count, which the park does not date. Moose arrived in the early 1900s, and wolves crossed an ice bridge from the mainland in the winter of 1948.

The wolves fell to two animals between 2016 and 2018. Between fall 2018 and fall 2019 the Park Service brought in 19: four from Grand Portage, eleven from Ontario and four from Michigan. Its populations page still describes the project as reintroducing 20 to 30 wolves. The dataset has no count for 2021 or 2025.

Moose average over six feet at the shoulder and nearly 1,000 pounds. The 2026 moose count is close to the low of 500 that the park's moose page gives for the years since 1980. The park's own dataset, though, bottoms out at 385 in 2006. Moose often feed in inland lakes and beaver ponds at dawn and dusk. The park names Washington Creek at Windigo, Ojibway Lake, Feldtmann Lake and Hidden Lake in Tobin Harbor.

Bulls in rut are often aggressive, so the park asks for more distance in September and October. Wolves live in packs of four to eight and are rarely seen. A wolf closer than 25 feet calls for backing away or making noise, never running.

Why can't you bring a dog, a car or a bike inside the 4½-mile boundary?

Isle Royale bans dogs, cats and other mammals, even aboard boats inside the park's 4½-mile boundary. Service dogs need a permit obtained beforehand. The Park Service says a 1980 parvovirus outbreak that cut the wolves from 50 to 14 likely came from a pet dog.

Cars stay on the mainland, and bicycles and other wheeled devices are not allowed on the trails. The island is a designated wilderness, so everything moves on foot or by boat.

Cell service on the island is unreliable, any signal may come from a Canadian tower, and there is no public Wi-Fi. A satellite phone is available at the Rock Harbor and Windigo stores when they are open. The park warns that emergency response and evacuation take time.

How cold is the Lake Superior shore from Houghton to Grand Portage?

Isle Royale has no NOAA weather station, so the nearest normals come from the mainland on either side of the lake. In July the average high is 75°F at the Houghton airport, 72°F at Copper Harbor and 74°F at Grand Portage.

The table gives NOAA's 1991 to 2020 average highs and lows. Copper Harbor gets 26 inches of precipitation a year and Grand Portage 31 inches, with 55 inches of snow at Grand Portage, a figure NOAA marks as provisional. The Park Service says island temperatures can swing 20 degrees, with cold shorelines and hot ridges. Snow, ice and freezing spray can coat the shore in September and October.

How far are Houghton, Copper Harbor and Grand Portage from the airports?

Houghton, the Ranger III's port, is about 400 miles north of Chicago and 200 miles north of Green Bay, by the park's own figures. United flies daily to Houghton County Memorial Airport, where National and Alamo rent cars. Indian Trails runs a daily bus to Houghton, but no bus goes to Copper Harbor.

The distances are the park's own figures except the Minneapolis row, and the drive times are our own routing, without border queues. The park and the airport measure the Houghton distance from different points. From Duluth, Arrowhead Transit runs a bus to Grand Marais on Tuesdays, with shuttles on to Grand Portage on weekdays.

Houghton and the island are on Eastern time, while Grand Portage and its two boats keep Central time, an hour behind. The Park Service advises staying on Central time for a trip from Grand Portage. Clocks go back at 2 a.m. on 1 November 2026, the day the park closes. Our guide to Michigan covers the state's other National Park Service sites.