Brockway Mountain

There are multiple nature preserve trails that are fabulous Hiking & Walking trails, so one must keep their eyes peeled for various trailheads scattered along the roadside. These trails will guide you upon breathtaking on-the-edge panoramic points, and into the deep woods of this other-worldly mountainous terrain – featuring dwarfed trees and a wide-diversity of flora and fauna. And then there are the spectacular fungi of all sorts, sizes, shapes and colors, and speaking of colors, the mountain’s Fall Colors are simply WOW!

Trails for the Copper Harbor Mountain Biking trail-system are also found off of Brockway Mountain Drive and bikers are strongly encouraged to stay-on-the-designated-singletrack and avoid riding on the narrow road harboring many blind-spots. 

ORV Riding and Snowmobiling are other popular ways to experience the beauty of Brockway Mountain Drive depending on the time of the year.

Featuring the highest paved road between the Rockies and the Alleghenies, this drive to the top of Brockway Mountain is ten-miles long and includes many pull-offs enabling visitors to stop and take in the incredible scenery. Heading up from Copper Harbor, the first designated lookout (AKA “the nose of Brockway”) provides some superb views above the tiny village and Lake Superior in a postcard-like setting below. At the top, 735 feet above the Lake, visitors will discover a breathtaking 360° view of Lake Superior, the surrounding woodlands, rugged topography and inland lakes. On a clear day one can see Isle Royale on the horizon over 50 miles away! And better yet, consider catching a sunset or sunrise on top of the world – watch the sun drop down into Lake Superior with the best panoramic, unobstructed view of the sky.

Over a billion years ago, shifting tectonic plates collided together and created a rift fault with deep cracks in the earth’s crust. A series of ancient lava flows emerged and formed the Lake Superior basin between Isle Royale and the Keweenaw Peninsula. Eons of geologic events, glaciers, time and weather sculpted a magnificent coastal ridge of which Brockway Mountain is a prominent part of today. Learn more about the area’s Geoheritage & Geology.

The Mountain was named for one of Copper Harbor’s earliest settlers, Daniel Brockway.  During the time when Keweenaw County was at the heart of the great copper boom, Brockway was a businessman and mine agent who also served as the postmaster and a road commissioner, in addition to opening the first hotel and eventually a school in Copper Harbor. Learn about the history of the Brockway Mountain Drive