Parking
No road access. Start at Raspberry Island Dock after arriving by private vessel, rental canoe or kayak, or the Rock Harbor tour boat.
Overview
About Raspberry Island Trail
Why go
- A short loop combines an acidic bog with rugged Lake Superior shore.
- Interpretive signs add plant and geology detail to the walk.
Heads up
- A boat or watercraft crossing is required to reach the dock.
- Narrow boards and wet rocks can make footing slick.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Isle Royale map
Full mapElevation594–633 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
8 active Isle Royale alerts
- ClosureSeasonal park closure begins November 1Isle Royale closes to public use November 1–April 15 because extreme winter weather threatens visitor safety; the closure extends 4.5 miles into Lake Superior from the island.Official details
- ClosureCamping closures at east-end campgrounds and Zone 9Camping restrictions are in effect at four east-end campgrounds and Off-trail Camping Zones 9–13 and 30–38 because of increased human-wildlife interactions and food-storage concerns.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Isle Royale Tour Guide
Your drive to Raspberry Island Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Isle Royale National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
The Lava Beneath the Ridges0:00 / 0:34
“Isle Royale's long ridges began as layers of lava. About one point one billion years ago, North America started pulling apart, and molten rock poured out through the cracks.”
Plays on the road 0.5 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Isle Royale Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- A Western Plant on Superior
- Skiing for Science
- Copper Before the Mine Shafts
- Built for the Dive
- 17 audio storiesacross Isle Royale’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Moose, Wolf, Bald Eagle, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 39 trails, 83 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Raspberry Island Trail
The complete island walkRaspberry Island Trail is a roughly 0.
Raspberry Island Trail is a roughly 0.9-mile loop from Raspberry Island Dock through boreal forest, a fragile acidic bog, and rocky Lake Superior shore. The park map shows an outer loop of 0.7 mile and an inner loop of 0.2 mile; this route includes both and rounds to 0.9 mile. Allow about 45 minutes to walk and pause at the interpretive signs. One brochure line gives a conflicting two-mile round-trip figure, but that does not match the map's loop labels.
Reach the dock by waterThere is no road access to Raspberry Island.
There is no road access to Raspberry Island. Reach its dock by private boat, rented canoe or kayak, or the Rock Harbor tour boat. Plan the crossing before setting out; the tour's full outing takes much longer than the walk itself. Pets are not allowed on the trail.
Narrow, uneven footingThe trail and boardwalk are only 18 inches wide.
The trail and boardwalk are only 18 inches wide. Unpaved sections have rocks and roots, and the boards can be slippery when wet. It is short and low-relief, but this is not a smooth path for a hurried stroll; watch the tread, especially after rain.
A fragile bogPlanked bridges cross the island's spongy acidic bog.
Planked bridges cross the island's spongy acidic bog. Look closely for sundew and pitcher plants, which thrive in this unusual wet ground. The signs explain how the plant community fits the island; keep to the narrow route through the fragile bog.
Rocky Lake Superior shoreThe loop reaches rugged shoreline where the lake meets fractured rock.
The loop reaches rugged shoreline where the lake meets fractured rock. Interpretive signs explain the shore's geology and plant life. For a photo, include some of the angular rock in the foreground with the open water beyond it; a straight shot of the lake misses the texture that makes this stop distinctive.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Isle Royale
308 sightingsMooseMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
93 sightingsWolfMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
77 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
150 sightingsLoonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
24 sightingsTrumpeter SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
71 sightingsBeaverMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Isle Royale. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
