Big Carp River Trail

The Big Carp River Trail descends from the high escarpment country into one of the Porcupine Mountains' most intimate river corridors, following the Big Carp River through old-growth hemlock and sugar maple forest before arriving at a remote stretch of Lake Superior shoreline. The trailhead sits at the Pinkerton Creek parking area, and the route quickly enters canopy so dense that ferns carpet every square foot of the forest floor in lush summer green. The Big Carp is a clear, cold brook-trout stream that tumbles over mossy boulders and pools beneath undercut root masses; anglers often wade its shallows in waders while hikers pick their way along the muddy but well-signed trail. Several log-stringer bridges cross side tributaries, each accompanied by the sound of moving water. At roughly mile four the forest opens abruptly onto a cobblestone beach where the Big Carp pours into Lake Superior, its tannin-brown water mixing with the vast blue of the lake. A backcountry cabin and rustic campsite sit near the mouth, popular with multi-night through-hikers. The return climb gains most of the 800 feet of elevation in a sustained push through second-growth maple, rewarding effort with occasional ridge-top glimpses of the lake.