Hiking Marquette’s Mountains

Hiking in Marquette can be one of the best experiences that you will have in Marquette, if you love the outdoors of course. Since I have moved here, I have traversed through many miles over countless trails in the Marquette area. In this article I will take you through two places to hike, with views to die for.

First up, Sugarloaf Mountain. To reach Sugarloaf take highway 550 towards Big Bay. After about 5-10 minutes you will see the sign for it and a big parking lot on your right. Sugarloaf is a must hike whether you are just visiting or thinking about coming to school at Northern Michigan University. There are two different trai
ls to the top labeled difficult and easy. The easier trail is mostly stairs for the majority of your climb whereas the difficult one is pretty rocky, but is still not too physically tasking. It was my first hike after moving north, and I have gone up it a multitude of times since then. At the very top there are benches you could sit on and railings to lean on to enjoy the gorgeous view of Lake Superior, the city, and the Upper Peninsulas back woods. If you visit at the perfect time, Sugarloaf is a great place to go and see the Northern Lights when they appear. I have never seen the lights more extravagant then I did from the top of Sugarloaf and every time I hear they’re out I make my way back out to the top of that mountain.

Next up, Hogsback. Hogsback is just a short drive out of Marquette. Take 550 NW out of town towards Big Bay. You should go past sugar loaf on your right before you reach the entrance. The entrance to this is actually the entrance to Wetmore Pond.  It will be on the left side of your road on the corner of a big right hand turn and will be marked with a Wetmore Pond sign. When you pull in, take the loop to the right. When you reach the back corner before you start looping left, this is where the trail head begins. It is unmarked, except for some stones. Hogsback has tons of intertwining trails that could lead you to other places, but as long as you keep walking toward the big mountain you should not get lost. Each trail is marked with colors, although it is not marked what each one means. Before you start you should know that this hike is kind of tasking on the body. Unlike sugar loaf, there are no stairs on your way up and the terrain is very rocky. This hike will take you around 1-2 hours each way so make sure you have a full day to go on an adventure. The views from the top are more than worth the hike. My favorite time of year to go is in the fall as the leaves change. The leaves changing makes for a beautiful sight during and once you’ve reached the top on your hike.

These are just a few of the spots that you can hike in Marquette. I chose these two hikes because I am a sucker for views. I’m sure in your travels here that you will find your own favorites, and a place to return back to, as you travel Marquette.

by Chad Pajtas

Chad Pajtas is a senior at Northern Michigan University expected to graduate May 2015. He is majoring in Media Production and New Technology and has a minor in communication studies. On his spare time you will likely find him "pretending" he is good at golfing on the links or somewhere on a lake tossing a few lines into the water.