Apostle Islands

Ashland County, Wisconsin, from 1895 U.S. Atlas with Apostle Islands located in the north.

The Apostle Islands are a group of 22 islands in Lake Superior, off the Bayfield Peninsula in northern Wisconsin.^[1] The majority of the islands are located in Ashland County—only Sand, York, Eagle, and Raspberry Islands are located in Bayfield County. All the islands except for Madeline Island are part of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. The islands in Ashland County are all in the Town of La Pointe, except for Long Island, which is in the Town of Sanborn, while those in Bayfield County are in the Towns of Russell and Bayfield.

The islands are the spiritual home for the Lake Superior Chippewa. The islands were named the Apostle Islands by New France historian Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix,^[2] who named them after the 12 apostles (for the 12 largest islands).^[3]

Environment

"The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore provides regionally diverse and unique plant communities."^[4] "Over 800 plant species occur within the lakeshore, including Wisconsin listed endangered and threatened species."^[4] The Apostles are dominated by boreal forest, composed largely of white spruce (Picea glauca) and balsam fir (Abies balsamea), often mixed with white birch (Betula papyrifera), white cedar (Thuja occidentalis), white pine (Pinus strobus), balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera) and quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides). On Madeline Island, Stockton Island, and several other islands, a unique bog-dune ecosystem can be found near deep bays and enclosed lagoons.

According to the National Park Service, "One of the greatest concentrations of black bears in North America is found on Stockton Island in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Bears also regularly inhabit Sand and Oak islands, and, due to their mobility, may be found on just about any of the Apostle Islands."^[5]

Sea caves at Devils Island

"The Lakeshore provides important nesting habitat for the following colonial nesting birds: herring and ring-billed gulls, double-crested cormorants, great blue herons, and cliff swallows. Gull and Eagle Islands combined have 88% of the lakeshore's breeding herring gull populations and 80% of the herring gull breeding population on the entire Wisconsin shore of Lake Superior. Eagle Island has the only great blue heron rookery in the park."^[6]

Sea caves

Some winters the lake freezes solid enough that the Park Service lets people walk from Meyers Beach across the lake ice to see the caves.

Good examples of the sea caves of the Great Lakes are located on the shorelines of the Apostle Islands. Examples include the following locations: Swallow Point on Sand Island, the North Shore of Devils Island, and near Squaw Bay on the mainland. Arches and delicate chambers are visible. During the winters, visitors can see frozen waterfalls and chambers filled with delicate icicles.

Islands

All islands lie in the Town of La Pointe, in Ashland County, unless indicated otherwise.

(source)

See also

• Apostle Islands Lighthouses
• Apostle Islands National Lakeshore
• La Pointe, Wisconsin
• La Pointe (community), Wisconsin
• Big Bay State Park
• Islands of the Midwest
• List of islands of the United States
• Islands of the Great Lakes
• Populated islands of the Great Lakes

References

External links

• National Park Service' Apostle Islands National Lakeshore web site
• Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore web site

Apostle Islands Islands Madeline Island Stockton Island Gull Island Eagle Island Outer Island Oak Island Sand Island Basswood Island Bear Island Michigan Island Hermit Island Cat Island Otter Island Manitou Island Rocky Island Long Island Ironwood Island York Island Raspberry Island Devils Island South Twin Island North Twin Island Lighthouses Michigan Island Light Raspberry Island Light Outer Island Light Sand Island Light Devils Island Light Gull Island Light La Pointe Light Chequamegon Point Light Ashland Harbor Breakwater Light Shipwrecks Big Bay sloop City of Ashland D.R. Owen Lucerne Manistee Marquette Moonlight Noquebay Ottawa Pretoria R.G. Stewart Sevona T.H. Camp Related Historical Sites Hadland Fishing Camp Bass Island Brownstone Company Quarry La Pointe Indian Cemetery Manitou Camp Rocky Island Historic District Madeline Island Historical Museum Protected Designation Apostle Islands National Lakeshore

Chequamegon Bay Communities Ashland Washburn Bayfield La Pointe Red Cliff Odanah Related Geographic Aspects Apostle Islands Bad River Bayfield Peninsula Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest Chequamegon Point Light Lake Superior Lake Superior Lowland South Shore of Lake Superior U.S. Route 2 Wisconsin Highway 13 Whittlesey Creek National Wildlife Refuge Local Native American Tribes Bad River Red Cliff La Pointe (historical)

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Coordinates: 46°57′55″N 90°39′51″W / 46.96528°N 90.66417°W / 46.96528; -90.66417