And last year, about 400 passengers on a German luxury cruise ship made a stop. To accommodate the bigger ferry, a bigger dock is being built next to the old one in St. James, the island's port, population and commercial center. Across Main Street, workers are busy on a new ACE hardware store that will be more than five times bigger than the old one. Of course, compared to the hubbub in other Michigan summer tourism meccas such as Saugatuck, Mackinac Island and Ann Arbor during Art Fair week, Beaver Island remains rustic and quiet. Two-thirds of the island, about 15 miles by seven miles at its widest, is state forest.
Most roads are gravel.
The year-round population is 450. But islanders say the pace of visitors is accelerating, along with the number of people who are deciding to build second homes. The building boom has major contractors booked for the next two years, she says. A visitor soon gets the idea that anyone wanting to see Beaver Island might want to do so sooner rather than later. We're very much the opposite of Mackinac, very laid-back and relaxed.