[virgokid1]

Anyone heard of these caves/caverns with lakes inside 'em in the U.P.?

[Tex?Il?]

Possibly old iron or copper mines. I actually don't think there many natural caves in the U.P. The western half of the U.P. is mostly granite, and other igneous and metamorphic rocks of the Canadian shield.

You need limestone bedrock preferably with many cracks in it. Natural rainwater is slightly acidic and reacts with the calcium carbonate in limestone to create little solution channels.

Most of the eastern U.P. is limestone and sandstone bedrock, but only has a few rock outcrops. Most of the area is covered in swamp and sand plains. The limestone thats there is actually a dolomite, part of the Niagara escarpment that includes the Door peninsula in Wisconin, the rock that Niagara falls, falls over and some islands east of the U.P.

I went to school in the U.P. for four years, and have traveled all around, and there are no large caves to speak that I know of, and there probably aren't any.

Pardon me for the geology lesson, but I figured I'd give a thorough answer.

[Driller1]

If your really like caves, Central America is the place. Honduras is the greatest!

[virgokid1]

Thanks guys!

Tex1:

Thanks for the geo-lesson. I didn't know those things. That's why I come on this board, everyone has something good to offer. I have been to the Niagara escarpment in Ontario many times and really enjoy the changes in elevation and the greenery.. I have never been to the U.P., so I'm wondering, does it offer the same type of verdant surroundings as Ontario? Are there any mountain ranges or hilly areas?

Driller:

My good friend grew up in Honduras.. His dad was a plant pathologist for a banana grower out there and they had to move there..He enjoyed his life there, and always told me what a beautiful country it is. I have thought about living in Costa Rica, but I don't speak spanish.

Do you know how deep those caves go in central America? I want to explore DEEP caves. Ones with secret passageways to the insides of the earth. Hollow earth theory anyone?

[Tex?Il?]

The U.P. is truly a hidden gem. I haven't been to Ontario. I have been to Maine though, which is very comparing, except the locals have a different accent/heritage and the big body of water is an ocean instead of a huge lake.

The hilly areas and low mountain ranges are found more in the west. Check out the Porkies (Porcupine Mtns. Wilderness State Park), the Keewenaw, and are NW of Marquette (where I went to school). There are a number of trails going up wooded rugged hills to get a great view. The Eastern U.P. is more flat, but also has some beautiful scenery in Pictured Rocks, Taquahmenon (sp) Falls, and the overly touristy and busy Mackinac area, which is still great.

Hope this helps! Good luck.

[Driller1]

Country of Honduras - HONDURAS.COM

I own some land just south of Tella. It has about 1/3 of a mile of white sand beach. My retirement job. I love cav'n. We have gone in some restricted areas I do not know how deep in, we started from the top of a mountain, repelled down 70 ft or so, crawled about 1/8 of a mile, and came out behind a water falls. We were in 2 days. Maybe they post the danger signs to get people to pay to go. lol

[suydam]

I've hiked the Niagara Escarpment and the UP extensively.
In my opinion the UP is a little more wild than, say, the Bruce Peninsula.

The Porcupine Mountains (far western end of the UP) are about the hilliest section that has mapped hiking and backpacking. THe Huron Mountains are the wildest section of the UP (in my opinion).

I tend to prefer the western half of the UP for out-doors activities but there are great parts anywhere near the north or south coasts.

Also, I think the UP, running more E->W than the Bruce and much of the Niagara Escarpment, has more consistent foliage. It's pine forest mainly.

If you travel the UP be sure to check out Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Munising. It's my favorite hiking up there aside from Isle Royale which requires a long boat ride north into Superior.

[Driller1]

I loved Pictured Rock!!!!!

[virgokid1]

Thanks again guys for the info. My wife and I have always wanted to visit Isle Royal.

Nice to see that there are mountainous & green regions in Michigan.. It's so flat here in the SE part.. Very boring geographically..

Suydam: Your profile says you live in East Grand Rapids? If so, can I PM you about areas you recommend living? We're moving there in a year.

[Mr. Fluke]

Hello All:

I co-lead a small private caving group based in Sault ste Marie ont, Canada.
I can assure you there are caves in the the UP, the largest being a limestone cave at 785 meters. There are many smaller limestone caves aswell. The problem is that every cave is on private proprety, and require written concent to enter. There are 5-7 small sea caves on mackinac island, and some larger sea caves on the southern shore of lake superior. There is also a large "show cave" named "Bear Cave" near Buchana MI.

And all the geology/hydrology info above is correct...many larger limestone/dolomite caves exist but far below the water table.