Mt Arvon: Michigan's Highest Point

n21_104-7586, photo by sgowtham

Yesterday we featured Mark Chamerberlin’s photo of Michigan’s tallest building (the Renaissance Center) in our Daily Michigan email along with some more of Michigan’s tallest things. Seemed like a good theme to continue…

You can view Gowtham’s photo bigger and in his Michigan slideshow. About Mount Arvon, which is part of the ancient Huron Mountains, he writes:

Mt. Arvon is Michigan’s highest point standing at 1,979.238 ft above sea level. It is located in the rugged backwoods of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, about 25 [driving] miles from L’Anse. Getting to Mt. Arvon is no easy feat if one doesn’t know her/his way around. Due to logging operations, the roads in the area change frequently. In the winter, the roads become impassable due to the heavy snow the area receives. During the rainy season, the roads become muddy and are often unfit for passenger cars. As if that weren’t sufficient, the peak is not prominent as it is located in a heavily wooded area.

He adds that the blue waters in the distance are Lake Superior and:

…the edge of tiny strip of land [Copper Country State Forest] marks Point Abbaye. The piece of land lining up with horizon is the Keweenaw Peninsula. For many years, Mt. Curwood, located a few miles south of Mt. Arvon, was recognized as the highest point in Michigan. However, in 1982, the U.S. Department of Interior’s Geological Survey team gathered new measurements and found Mt. Curwood to be slightly lower in elevation than Mt. Arvon measuring in at 1,978.24 ft above sea level.

Slightly is an understatement – Wikipedia’s Mount Arvon entry explains that the surveyors found Arvon to be a whopping ONE FOOT taller than Curwood.

Check out both peaks on Google Maps and get a little more info in Summit Post’s entry for Mt. Arvon.