If you are visiting Porcupine Wilderness State Park, pretty much everyone recommends hiking to the Summit Peak Observation Tower. Although this wasn’t our favorite hike, we did end up doing it twice. This hike is .9 miles each way with a 223 elevation gain before you get to the tower.
Check the Weather
The first time we took this hike, the weather was overcast and misty. We kept hoping it would clear as we hiked along the trail.
Unfortunately, it did not. We could only see the foggy mist from the top of the tower.
Sunrise Hike
So, we decided to try again for a sunrise hike. A couple of things to keep in mind. It takes about 25 minutes to drive to the parking area. Then you have to hike uphill. The prettiest part of the sunrise is typically 20 minutes or so before the actual time of the sunrise you see on your weather app. I say this because we didn’t take that into consideration, and we were running up the trail to try to make it to the sunrise. We made it, and this time the views were worth the climb.
As you can see, the trees were just beginning to turn when we visited. A few weeks later, the view from the tower would have been spectacularly colorful. If you have time in your schedule, this is a short and moderately easy hike you will enjoy. If you have more time, you might consider the Mirror Lake or Summit Peak hikes.