Hidden in the woods off M-28 near Marquette is one of the U.P.’s most delightfully strange roadside stops
Drive M-28 east of Marquette and, out in the middle of the woods, you will start seeing them. A rebar alligator. A pig riding a bicycle. A pink elephant. Dragons, spiders, flying saucers, and Bigfoot, all built out of scrap metal.
Welcome to Lakenenland, one of the most beloved and delightfully strange roadside stops in the entire U.P.
It is a 37-acre outdoor sculpture park, home to more than 100 whimsical metal creatures, tucked into the trees right across from Lake Superior. And here is the kicker: it is completely free, and it never closes. It sits right alongside Da Yoopers’ Tourist Trap in the pantheon of gloriously odd U.P. roadside stops.
The whole place is the work of one man, Tom Lakenen, a Marquette boilermaker who spent about 40 years working construction. He had no art training, just a high school welding class, but one day he started hauling scrap iron home from job sites and twisting it into shapes in his garage.
By his own telling, it started as a way to fill his time and replace a bad habit with something better. It worked. The sculptures kept coming, and pretty soon he had way more than his yard could hold.
So in 2003, he bought a chunk of land along M-28 and turned it into a park where anyone could come see his art for free. He has been adding to it ever since. The scrap metal, the story goes, was often traded for a dozen donuts or a case of beer.
The sculptures run the whole range, from goofy and lovable to the occasional sign where Tom tells the world exactly what he thinks. Some honor U.P. history and people who have passed, some are pure whimsy, and a few are pure Tom. That mix is the charm.
You can drive the half-mile loop or get out and walk the sculpture trail. There are picnic tables, a place to stretch your legs, and in winter the whole thing turns into a favorite snowmobile stop, with Tom often keeping a fire going for whoever rolls through. It makes a perfect stop on a U.P. road trip, especially if you are already headed to Pictured Rocks or Marquette.
Visitors give it a near-perfect rating. Not bad for a pile of scrap iron and one guy with a welder.
So next time you are cruising M-28 and a metal dragon catches your eye, pull over. It will not cost you a dime, and it is exactly the kind of weird, wonderful, only-in-the-U.P. thing worth stopping for.
Image credits: Photos courtesy of Lakenenland. Used with permission.
More worth reading
Sources, credits, and reporting details
Sources & accountability
How this story was reported
Editorial methodAggregation
Last verifiedAug. 14, 2026
Corrections statusNo material correction note is recorded on this article.
Primary sources
-
Lakenenland Sculpture Park – Pure Michigan property listing — Pure Michigan (Michigan Economic Development Corporation)
Accessed Aug. 14, 2026.
Confirms location (2800 M-28 East, Marquette), free admission, and park description. Verified live 2026-08-14.
Additional reporting
-
U.P. Travel and Recreation Association materials — Michigan’s Upper Peninsula Travel & Recreation Association
Accessed Aug. 14, 2026.
Cited in the article’s sources line. No public Lakenenland member page found on uptravel.com as of 2026-08-14; association materials describe the park as a free, year-round roadside attraction.
Photo and media credits
-
Lakenenland photos (featured image and article gallery) — Tom Lakenen / Lakenenland
Featured image record. Accessed Aug. 14, 2026. Courtesy of Lakenenland; used with permission.
Permission recorded in the article’s image-credit line: “Photos courtesy of Lakenenland. Used with permission.”
Yooper Hub community
The conversation
Real neighbors, real names. A Yooper Hub editor reads your first comment before it appears; after that you’re a known neighbor and your comments post right away. No account required. Community guidelines
No comments yet. Yours can start the conversation.