Munising Tourist Park
Michigan
Find: Purple and blue beach glass (Bay Furnace slag), Lake Superior Agates, prehnite, unakite, amygdaloidal basalt
GPS: 46.44096, -86.67737
Nearest city: Marquette, MI
Recommended Vehicle: Any
Summary:
This is one of my favorite campgrounds I’ve been to. It had nice facilities and we enjoyed some excellent beach camping when we visited in 2022. The shores of the campground have a cool secret waiting for those that take a dip after camping: Blue and purple slag glass!
The glass made its way into the water from the Bay Furnace which is up the coast to the Northwest of the campground. Look for marled purple, blue, and white pieces of beach tumbled glass while walking the shores. They stick out relative to the surrounding stone once you’ve trained your eye.
If I could remember where I put the couple pieces we found, I would have included pictures on this page. It’s neat stuff and a great place for families with modern facilities.
Note: Munising Tourist Park is a private location, but you can access the beach if you’re camping.
3 Helpful Tools
Chest Waders
Chest waders were the single best investment I made for exploring the shores of Lake Superior.
Agate Scoop
An agate scoop is helpful for both keeping dry and picking up rocks faster. You don’t need a fancy one. Mine is a golf club welded to a kitchen scoop.
Classifier
A classifier is helpful if you’re a fan of small agates and stones. One with a larger, 1-inch mesh would be what I’d pick.