The Ottawa National Forest is a large area of land covering 993,010 acres (401,860 hectares) in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It includes most of Gogebic and Ontonagon counties, as well as parts of Iron, Houghton, Baraga, and Marquette counties. The forest is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

The main office is located in Ironwood, Michigan, near the border with Wisconsin. The main visitor center is in Watersmeet, Michigan, in the southern part of the forest. These towns and others nearby are connected by U.S. Highway 2, a major road in the Western Upper Peninsula. Local offices for the U.S. Forest Service are located in Bessemer, Iron River, Kenton, Ontonagon, and Watersmeet.

Topography

Wooded slopes are found along the south shore of Lake Superior within the Ottawa National Forest, especially in the Black River area between Little Girl's Point and the Presque Isle River.

The Black River, which is designated as a National Wild and Scenic River, flows from near Copper Peak down toward the lake. Along its path, it passes over seven waterfalls that have been mapped and named. The Presque Isle River and its main tributary, Copper Creek, include eleven waterfalls. However, four of these waterfalls are not located within the national forest but are instead in the nearby Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.

Underwood Hill, which is 1,867 feet (569 meters) high and over 1,200 feet (370 meters) above the level of nearby Lake Superior, is the highest point in the Presque Isle River drainage area. This is not the highest point in the national forest, though. The highest point in the forest is an unnamed hill that is 1,900 feet (580 meters) high, located north of Lac Vieux Desert in southeastern Gogebic County. Rain or snow that falls on the north side of this hill flows through the Ontonagon River toward Lake Superior. Rain or snow that falls on the south side flows through the Wisconsin River to the Gulf of Mexico.

Climate

The Ottawa National Forest receives a large amount of rain and snow throughout the year. Some parts of the forest get more than 200 inches (500 cm) of snow each year. During winter, Lake Superior, which usually stays unfrozen, provides much of the moisture that becomes snow in the area. In summer, warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico travels north on winds from the south. This air remains humid until it reaches the Lake Superior region.

The forest has plenty of water but very little topsoil. During past Ice Ages, including the most recent Wisconsonian glaciation, glaciers moved across the area, scraping away soil and leaving bare rock or sand. This process created a unique boreal forest ecosystem.

History

The Ottawa National Forest is where several groups of the Ojibwa people lived for many years. They shared the area with many rocky wetlands and hunted animals like beavers for their fur. They sold the fur to traders from Canada and the eastern United States, including those from the American Fur Company. When the fur trade ended, the government sold most of the forest in the 1854 Treaty of La Pointe. Some of the money from trapping fur was used to buy land near Lac Vieux Desert. Today, the descendants of those people live there as the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.

In 1892–1894, the construction of the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railway allowed logging to begin in the forest. A few areas with old-growth white pine and red pine trees still remain.

After logging stopped, much of the forest was left untouched. The U.S. government created the Ottawa National Forest in 1931. The forest grew larger after two major land purchases in 1933 and 1935. In 1935, the forest reached its largest size of 1,026,329 acres (4,105 km²). Later, some land was sold to private owners, and the forest now covers about 1.0 million acres (4,000 km²).

After World War II, more people began visiting the forest by car because of growing automobile tourism.

Recreation

Ottawa National Forest is a place where people can enjoy fishing, canoeing, and lake kayaking during the summer. In the winter, visitors can go cross-country skiing or snowmobiling.

The forest includes three U.S. wilderness areas that are managed by the Forest Service. These areas are the McCormick Wilderness and the Sturgeon River Gorge Wilderness near Kenton, Michigan, and the Sylvania Wilderness near Watersmeet, Michigan.

The North Country Trail passes through the forest. Hikers can use this trail to reach O Kun de Kun Falls.

Ottawa Visitor Center

The Ottawa Visitor Center opened in 1971. It provides educational programs and displays that explain the natural history and resources of the Forest. The center's goal is to help visitors use the Forest in a safe, wise, and caring way.