Barker's Island Outer Beach
Superior, WI
Barker's Island Outer Beach is about 2,000 feet of fine sand on the lake side of Barker's Island in Superior, with the Aerial Lift Bridge and Duluth's hillside across the harbor. There are restrooms and free parking. The island also has a marina, a hotel, and the SS Meteor whaleback ship museum.
Fine sand with a view of Duluth's skyline, though the harbor setting feels more urban than wild.
How we score beachesTour the SS Meteor museum ship on the island before heading to the beach.
Free parking on Barker's Island.
A short walk from the parking area to the sand.
Superior Bay is shallower and warmer than the open lake by midsummer. Winter brings ice fishing on the bay.
More Great Lakes beaches
Sleeping Bear Dunes Beach
Empire, MI · Great Lakes
Freshwater Lake Michigan surf below towering sand dunes, some over 400 feet tall, with water clear enough to rival a coastline and a hike back up the dune to burn it off.
New Buffalo City Beach
New Buffalo, MI · Great Lakes
New Buffalo City Beach is the first real Lake Michigan beach you hit crossing from Indiana, a wide stretch of sand at the end of Whittaker Street beside the harbor and the Galien River channel. Chicago weekenders fill it in summer. The town's shops and restaurants are a five minute walk back up the street.
Warren Dunes State Park
Sawyer, MI · Great Lakes
Warren Dunes State Park in Sawyer has roughly three miles of Lake Michigan shoreline and some of the tallest dunes in southwest Michigan. Tower Hill rises about 260 feet above the lake, and climbing it and running back down is a rite of passage. On a hot July Saturday the beach feels like a small city.