Apostle Islands

The Apostle Islands are a group of 22 islands in Lake Superior off the Bayfield Peninsula in northern Wisconsin, in the United States. Most of the islands lie in Ashland County, with Sand, York, Eagle and Raspberry Islands in Bayfield County, and Madeline Island, the largest at over 15,000 acres, remaining privately inhabited outside the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore that protects the other 21. The islands are a continuation of the Bayfield Peninsula, formed of sandstone laid down by ancient rivers more than 500 million years ago, later carved into their present shapes by glacial meltwater and the storms of Lake Superior. The smallest island, Gull Island, covers just 3.51 acres, while the second largest, Stockton Island, covers nearly 9,900 acres and supports one of the greatest concentrations of black bears in North America.