Copper Harbor is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in Keweenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located within Grant Township. The population of the CDP was 108 as of the 2010 census.The community is located at the northern tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula, which is the northernmost permanently populated community and northernmost point of mainland in the state of Michigan. Due to its natural environment and surroundings, Copper Harbor is marketed as an all-season tourist destination and also contains Fort Wilkins Historic State Park.

Grand Marais () is a city in Cook County, Minnesota, United States, on the North Shore of Lake Superior. It had a population of 1,351 at the 2010 census.[6] It is the county seat and sole municipality of Cook County.[7] Before it was settled by French Canadians and before Minnesota's statehood, Grand Marais was inhabited by the Anishinaabe indigenous people, also known as the Ojibwe. The Ojibwe name for the area is Gichi-biitoobiig,[8] which means "great duplicate water," "parallel body of water" or "double body of water" (like a bayou), a reference to the two bays that form this large harbor of Lake Superior.[9] The area was a bustling fur trading station in the 1700s, and the French Canadian Voyageurs termed the settled village "Grand Marais" ("Great Marsh"), referring to a marsh that, in early fur-trading times, was 20 acres (8.1 ha) or less in area, nearly at the level of Lake Superior, and at the head of the little bay and harbor that led to the settlement of the village there. Another small bay on the east, less protected from storms, is separated from the harbor by a slight projecting point and a short beach. "Grand Marais" also may mean "sheltered water area", as the harbor has natural breakwall rock outcroppings, providing a natural safe harbor for early Lake Superior explorers. To the east of Grand Marais is Chippewa City. Chippewa City thrived in the 1890s, with about 100 families living in the village. Francis Xavier church still stands slightly north of town, just off Highway 61. The church began as a Jesuit mission from Fort William, Ontario, in 1855 to minister to the Ojibwe in the area. The permanent structure was built in 1895 and was used until declining attendance forced it to close in 1936. The Cook County Historical Society restored the site between 1970 and 1974 and it was added to the National Register in 1986. Grand Marais is a gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), via the Gunflint Trail, historically a footpath for travelers and fur traders from inland lakes to Lake Superior. It is now County Road 12, a paved National Scenic Byway that begins in Grand Marais and ends at Saganaga Lake in the BWCAW, near the U.S. border with Ontario. It provides access to many of BWCAW's entry points. The area is home to several nonprofit educational institutions, such as the Grand Marais Art Colony and the North House Folk School, and art galleries featuring the work of local and regional artists.[10] On April 13, 2020, a large fire swept through downtown Grand Marais, destroying three buildings: The Crooked Spoon Cafe, White Pine North, and Picnic and Pine. The fire burned for over three hours in intense winds.

Marquette ( mar-KEHT) is a city in Marquette County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 21,355 at the 2010 census, which makes it the largest city in the Upper Peninsula. It also serves as the county seat of Marquette County. Located on the shores of Lake Superior, the city is a major port, known primarily for shipping iron ore. The city is partially surrounded by Marquette Charter Township, but the two are administered autonomously. Marquette is the home of Northern Michigan University. In 2012, Marquette was listed among the 10 best places to retire in the United States by CBS MoneyWatch.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac. It is bounded primarily by Lake Superior to the north, separated from the Canadian province of Ontario at the east end by the St. Marys River, and flanked by Lake Huron and Lake Michigan along much of its south. Although the peninsula extends as a geographic feature into the state of Wisconsin, the state boundary follows the Montreal and Menominee rivers and a line connecting them. First inhabited by Algonquian-speaking native American tribes, the area was explored by French colonists, then occupied by British forces, before being ceded to the newly established United States in the late 18th century. After being assigned to various territorial jurisdictions, it was granted to the newly formed state of Michigan as part of the settlement of a dispute with Ohio over the city of Toledo. The region's exploitable timber resources and the discovery of iron and copper deposits in the 19th century brought immigrants, especially French Canadian, Finnish, Swedish, Cornish, and Italian. (The peninsula includes the only counties in the United States where a plurality of residents claim Finnish ancestry.) With the exhaustion of readily available minerals, the area's economy declined in the 20th century, largely becoming dependent on logging and tourism. The Upper Peninsula contains 29% of the land area of Michigan but only 3% of its total population. Residents are called Yoopers (derived from "UP-ers") and have a strong regional identity, enhanced by the perception that they are neglected by the rest of the state. Proposals have been made to establish the UP as a separate state, but have failed to gain traction. Its largest cities are Marquette, Sault Ste. Marie, Escanaba, Menominee, Houghton, and Iron Mountain. Because of the surrounding waters and northern latitude, it receives more snow than most of the eastern U.S. The heavily forested land, soil types, short growing season and logistical factors (e.g. long distance to market, lack of infrastructure) make the Upper Peninsula poorly suited for agriculture. The region is home to a variety of wildlife, including moose, wolves, coyotes, deer, foxes, bears, bobcats, eagles, hawks, owls, and smaller animals.