Should Apostle Islands be a national park?

By Danielle Kaeding | Wisconsin Public Radio

Along the city dock in Bayfield, tourists are lining up to board the 65-foot long vessel, Archipelago, for Apostle Islands Cruises’ grand tour of the Apostle Islands. The islands are considered the crown jewels of Lake Superior, and hundreds of thousands of tourists visit each year to take in their sandstone cliffs and honeycomb caves.

Bayfield County tourism director Mary Motiff said the islands are the county’s most popular attraction by far.

“The Apostle Islands are literally the thing that puts us on the map, and it affects people from all over,” Motiff said. “Even people who are staying in Cable and Hayward and Duluth are making day trips to the Apostle Islands.”

Lorna Turner is here from Illinois. As the boat glides towar...