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BESSEMER
POINTS
OF
INTEREST
Copper Peak Ski Flying Hill. Visitors can enjoy the world's highest man-made ski-flying hill and one of the Midwest's most awesome views, amazing in fall color season. A chair lift or road reaches the observation platform 18 stories above CR 513. The daring can walk up another 8 stories toward the sky. ...
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Black River waterfalls & Black River Scenic Byway. Five memorable, very different waterfalls in one area testify to the power and varied character of water. A swinging footbridge reaches Rainbow Falls (via the North Country Trail) and a delightful Lake Superior swimming beach by a pretty CCC-era boat harbor. Four other waterfalls are accessed by individual trails from CR 513, or by a North Country Trail segment. ...
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Powderhorn Falls. Another of Gogebic's charming falls, this one with a swimming hole ...
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Copper Peak Ski Flying Hill
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In summer and on fall weekends the public can visit an observation platform 18 stories up the tower of thehighest man-made ski flying hill in the world and take in a view that just may be "the most awesome vista in the Midwest," as promoted. On a clear day you can see the Porcupine Mountains to the northeast and the Apostle Islands 35 miles to the west. On an exceptionally clear day, if a Canadian high pressure system is moving in, you can see 85 miles across Lake Superior to Grand Marais, Minnesota and Isle Royale to the north. (Most of the Gogebic Range's nearby iron-mining towns are shielded from view by ridges, however.)
In fall color season, the mix of hardwoods and conifers set against the blue of Lake Superior is especially memorable.
Most visitors get to the platform on the chair lift (a thrilling experience in itself) and then an elevator. For those whose fear of heights rules out the chair lift, a road also leads to the elevator.
The truly courageous can hike up the remainder of the ski jump itself, another eight stories, and see through the eyes of ski flyers as they would prepare to start down the jump and fly 600 feet in the air.
Europe's ski-flying slides are longer, but they are built along mountainsides with the jump at the end. The hilltop here, reached by a chair lift, is over 350 feet above the land around it. The scaffolding of the ski slide rises another 280 feet in the air.
This sleek landmark of Corten steel was built in 1970 for the first international ski-flying tournament in the western hemisphere.
Ski flying involves longer distances and uses different equipment from ski-jumping. Ski fliers are the elite of ski jumpers "a whole different human being from, say, the ski jumpers who compete at Iron Mountain," says a local ski aficionado. There are a dozen or so qualified ski fliers in North America, among possibly a hundred in the world. They qualify by outstanding performance on Olympic-size hills.
The sport is much better known in Europe, where it's big news. On the logo of the international ski flying association, Ironwood takes its place among much better known ski areas in Austria, Germany, Norway, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic.
The idea for a ski flying hill here started in the 1930s, when the local ski club built a ski jump at Wolverine Hill near today's Grandview Hospital and were constantly in view of this distant hilltop. What a place for a super jump! They held onto the dream, collected contributions, and, after the mines closed, when unemployment reached over 30%, rallied political support for government loans and grants to build the ski flying jump. It was a big deal when a competition was held here, and a huge point of local pride for a small community without great wealth to have erected such an outstanding landmark and attraction.
The last competition here was in 1994. The landing area is being reengineered, and the nonprofit Copper Peak association hopes to host a ski-flying competition some day again.
Volunteers operate the summer chair lift to help support the project. Copper Peak no longer provides lifts to mountain bikers now that U.S. Steel has sold off much of ita adjoining land that had been open to the public under the Commercial Forest Reserve act.
To learn more about ski flying and see a video clip, start with www.copperpeak.com and www.ironwoodmi.org/attractions.
At the parking area, there's a picnic area.
On CR 513/Black River Road about 11 miles north of Bessemer. See directions to Black River waterfalls. (906) 932-3500. Open weekends from Mem. Day to mid June, then daily to Labor Day. May close Mondays; call first. From Labor Day into mid-October open weekends. Hours: 10-5. Not open in rainy weather. Rates for chair lift and elevator to top: $10/adult, $5/child. Handicap access: drive to elevator, get assistance there.
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