North Shore Visitor

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56 NorthShoreVisitor.com
GRAND
PORTAGE
Northeast of GrandMarais the roadwidens,population
decreases and the lake shows itself more frequently.
It is worth the 41-mile drive just to experience the
magnificent landscape of this most northeastern tip
of Minnesota.
Highlands rise to the north, the Susie Islands hover off
the coast and Lake Superior gives way to Isle Royale
National Park, a primitive archipelago overshadowed
by the Greenstone Ridge running the length of the
island. Over 90% of the main island is wilderness. It
can be visited via passenger service and day tours out
of Grand Portage Bay.
The bay has been attracting visitors for hundreds of
years. Ojibwe have been using the area as a summer
camp since as early as 1200 with archaeological
evidence of Native American encampments going
back to 1000.A small trading post was built in 1768 and
in 1779 the North West Company was formed. Activity
peaked at Grand Portage in the 1790s through 1803,
when the Company moved to Fort William, Canada.
In its heyday over a thousand voyageurs gathered
during the summer Rendezvous making the North
West Company bigger, in terms of commerce, than
even the Hudson Bay Company. The 8 1/2-mile Grand
Portage, “the walking place”, linked Lake Superior to
inland winter camps for Ojibwe and connecting trails
north and west for the voyageurs.
The Treaty of 1854 established Grand Portage
Reservation and the community continues today.
In 1958, Grand Portage was designated a National
Monument and the stockade and four of the original
fur trading post buildings were rebuilt. In 2007, the
Heritage Center was completed as a means to honor
the tribe’s history, people and culture. Tour the center
daily in the summer and weekdays in the winter. The
trading post’s Great Hall, Kitchen Canoe Warehouse,
Ojibwe Village & Voyageur Encampment are open daily mid-
May through mid-October with the Rendezvous celebration
and traditional powwow held the second full weekend in
August.
© Max Simonowicz