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Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Plan Your Visit
The lakeshore is open all year.
Apostle Islands Cruise Service
Bayfield/Ashland Counties Tourism Information
Bayfield Chamber of Commerce
Madeline Island Chamber of Commerce
Wisconsin Department of Tourism
The headquarters visitor center is one block off Wisconsin Route 13 in Bayfield. The visitor center and fishery exhibit at Little Sand Bay is accessible by road, 13 miles north of Bayfield. Meyers Road, off Highway 13 about 5 miles east of Cornucopia, offers lake access and a trailhead. Most other facilities are accessible only by water.
Although Apostle Islands National Lakeshore features several points of interest located on the mainland, most people consider the islands themselves to be the most rewarding destination. Excursion boat trips leave from Bayfield daily from late May to mid-October. The Apostle Islands Cruise Service offers a variety of excursion trips and a camper and hiker shuttle to several islands. Cruises provide views of most of the islands, as well as close looks at dramatic sandstone cliffs and historic lighthouses. The Cruise Service also operates a water taxi service between Bayfield and. Area marinas offer rental sailboats and will arrange full- and half-day trolling trips for trout and salmon. Local outfitters also rent sea kayaks.
Maine ocean islands provide the only nesting sites for Atlantic puffins in the United States. Eastern Egg Rock in the midcoast region, Seal Island and Matinicus Rock at the mouth of Penobscot Bay, and Machias Seal Island and Petit Manan Island off the downeast coast provide habitat for more than 4,000 puffins each summer.