Ten years ago when my husband and I purchased a small motel just two miles north of Paradise’s blinking light, we discovered that I had to continue to work the winter months in Indiana before I could retire with a pension. When people would ask me about my husband, I would tell them that he was living now in Paradise. Their gasps quickly alerted me that I needed to fully explain. He hadn’t died and gone to heaven, he continues to live but now in heaven on earth, Paradise, Michigan, about 90 minutes north of the Mighty Mac bridge.
Some people think of Paradise as balmy breezes in temperate climates while ocean waves roll along the sandy beaches and palm trees sway in rhythm with the waves.
The bounty of fish in the Lake Superior Whitefish Bay waters, the shear numbers of elk, deer, beavers, raccoon, mink, coyote, fox, and bear flourishing among the wide range of cedar, spruce, oak, and beech trees had sustained many Ojibwe families throughout the seasons supplementing their diets with wild blueberries and cranberries that flourished through the summer months. Trade with European voyagers had been going on for a couple of hundred years. There appeared to be an unlimited supply of resources for trappers, fishermen, and lumber companies.
In the mid 20th century, community leaders Ed, Tom, and Curlie stood along the fresh water shores of Lake Superior’s Whitefish Bay contemplating future settlements and developments. They couldn’t help but profess their joy at the blue skies and turquoise colored fresh waters of Whitefish Bay. In this magnificent region, rich with natural resources and beauty, they refereed to it as Paradise.
The culturally rich region is surrounded by Michigan’s Tahquamenon State Forest (50,000 acres), the National Hiawatha Forest (880,000 acres), and Lake Superior, the world’s largest freshwater lake by surface area. Hiking trails, kayaking, canoe paddling, strolling shorelines, world-class sunrises, and sunsets, nestled in an area referred to as Paradise.
Experience Michigan’s Paradise, connecting to the grandeur and beauty of the earth
