We are a group that focuses on the preservation and facilitation of the Apostle Islands, including Madeline Island. This page encompasses the entire Apostle Islands region rather than just the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Periodically we offer free ice cave tours and free sea cave kayak tours to raise awareness and participation in the Apostle Islands. At the northernmost tip of Wisconsin,
the twenty-two Apostle Islands form an
archipelago in Lake Superior off the shore of the Bayfield Peninsula. Apostle Islands
National Lakeshore consists of twenty-one of the Apostle Islands and a narrow, 12-mile
long strip along the northwest shore of the Bayfield Peninsula. Madeline Island, the
largest of the Apostle Islands, is not part of the national lakeshore. The boundaries of the
national lakeshore extend one quarter mile into Lake Superior from the mainland portion
of the lakeshore and from each island. The national lakeshore contains 69,372 acres, of
which 27,232 acres are submerged. However, the lakeshore is spread over a much larger
area, encompassing 450 square miles. The Bayfield Peninsula along with Eagle, Sand,
York, and Raspberry Islands are located within Bayfield County; the remaining islands
are in Ashland County. The U.S. Congress established Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in 1970. The
lakeshore originally included twenty islands; Long Island was added in 1986. As stated
in the 1970 enabling legislation, the purpose of the lakeshore is “to conserve and develop
for the benefit, inspiration, education, recreational use, and enjoyment of the public
certain significant islands and shoreline of the United States.” The law recognizes the
significance of the lakeshore’s natural, historic, scientific, and archaeological features for
the purpose of protecting these features and making them available for public education
and enjoyment. The dry language of the legislation doesn’t begin to capture the scenic
beauty and historical interest of the Apostle Islands. Among the lakeshore’s significant
natural features are picturesque sandstone formations, breeding habitat for more than 150
species of birds, and stands of virgin timber. The Apostle Islands have a rich human
history beginning with Native Americans, especially the Ojibwe, who have remained in
the region to the present. With the arrival of European Americans, the fur trade,
shipping, fishing, logging, quarrying, farming, and tourism shaped the Apostle Islands. The lakeshore’s outstanding collection of lighthouses is its best known historic resource,
but quarries, fishing camps, and other remnants of island history also teach and intrigue
visitors. Forest regeneration following logging was so successful that in 2004 roughly 80
percent of the national lakeshore’s land area was designated as wilderness. The areas
with the greatest concentration of historic resources, including Sand, Basswood, and
Long islands, were purposely left out of the wilderness designation. Nevertheless,
significant historic resources are within the designated wilderness area.
