“I saw comments online where people were frustrated with visitors. So I brought everyone I’d met over five years into one room—and that’s how Respect Marquette began.” — Susan Estler

Marquette County in Michigan is known for its breathtaking forests, rugged trails, and the endless blue of Lake Superior. But its most powerful asset might just be its community, and a unique effort to help visitors experience this special place respectfully and sustainably.

In this episode of Travel Beyond, host David Archer speaks with Susan Estler, CEO of Travel Marquette , about Respect Marquette County, an initiative that invites both visitors and locals to care for the area’s land, culture, and people. The coalition began after Susan noticed an uptick in frustration on social media about visitor behaviour. Rather than letting tensions rise, she brought community leaders together to start a bigger conversation.

That conversation has led to action. Today, the coalition champions Leave No Trace principles, promotes cultural awareness, and even launched a Bark Ranger program to encourage dog owners to model responsible outdoor behaviour. Quarterly meetings now bring together trail organizations, municipalities, and tourism leaders to align on shared values and solutions.

Marquette’s strategy doesn’t stop at behaviour change. It embraces a broader movement: slow travel. Susan believes visitors can better understand the place (and reduce their impact) when they slow down, linger, and connect. “Rather than going to seven places in six days,” she says, “maybe go to two and really immerse yourself.” The approach fits Marquette’s naturally relaxed pace and gives travellers a more meaningful experience.

And while Lake Superior might feel like an ocean, Marquette is no big city. With only 66,000 residents spread across the county, preserving the integrity of the land and lifestyle is critical. Over-visitation may not be about sheer numbers here; it’s about how people show up and what kind of impact they leave behind.

Susan also reminds us that around 50% of Marquette’s visitors come to see friends and family. That stranger you’re frustrated with? Might be someone’s cousin. “Just take a deep breath and show some grace,” she says. It’s a simple idea. But one with powerful potential to reshape the way we travel and treat destinations.

In this episode, you’ll also learn:

• How the Respect Marquette County coalition brings residents and visitors together.
  
• Why slow travel supports sustainability and community wellbeing.
  
• What Marquette is doing to protect natural sites from social media-fuelled overuse.
  
• How locals are helping model responsible behaviour through education and example.

🎧 Subscribe to Travel Beyond on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast platform.

Show notes

• Discover the initiatives behind Marquette’s community-led approach to responsible tourism through the Respect Marquette County project → travelmarquette.com
  
• Explore how destinations like Marquette are redefining outdoor experiences with sustainability at the core in The Greater Great Outdoors feature → destinationthink.com
  
• Learn how Marquette is engaging pet owners in responsible recreation through the Bark Ranger program, complete with dog-friendly Leave No Trace tips and take-home bandanas → travelmarquette.com
  
• Learn the essential Leave No Trace guidelines that help visitors minimize their impact on nature → www.lnt.org

Episode Transcript

This transcript was generated using AI and has been lightly reviewed for accuracy.

My name is Susan [00:01:00] Estler and I am the CEO of Travel Marquette in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. 

David Archer: Excellent. And this isn’t your first role in a travel destination, is it? 

Susan Estler: No, no. I actually started in Florida. Um, I was there in Bradenton, Florida for seven years in marketing and then Panama City Beach, um, after that.

And then I was up in Scranton, Pennsylvania. 

David Archer: Okay, great. So you’ve been in the travel industry a little while then? 

Susan Estler: Yes. Yeah. Yeah, over 20 years. 

David Archer: Okay. Uh, and then, so travel Marquette represents, uh, all of Marquette County, is that right? 

Susan Estler: That is correct. We’re actually the largest county within the state of Michigan.

David Archer: Okay. And, uh, can you give us the lay of the land a little bit up there for people who aren’t familiar with the destination yet? What kind of environment are you in, yeah. 

Susan Estler: Describe, yeah, we’re actually the, um, largest municipality in the upper peninsula, [00:02:00] landmass wise. The Upper Peninsula is a third of the state of Michigan, and um, but we have 3% of the population.

And, um, Marquette is actually the largest city with a whopping 22,000 people and our entire county. Um, knowing that we’re the largest county in the state of Michigan. Only has 66,000 people. So we’re on beautiful Lake Superior and we have a lot of inland lakes and um, just really, we’re right on the lake and it’s just beautiful.

David Archer: Yeah, I, I haven’t been to Lake Superior myself, but I know that you’re, you know, maybe if you squint hard enough, you can see Ontario. Probably not, but Yeah. Yeah. Not quite, 

Susan Estler: Maybe, Thunder Bay, I don’t know. Yeah, yeah, maybe. 

David Archer: Yeah. So, it’s a coastal city essentially. Uh, you’ve got a waterfront. Yes. 

Susan Estler: Yeah.

Yeah. Very much. Especially when I interviewed up here. Um. It was interesting [00:03:00] because I’ve always been a coastal person, you know, Florida and I grew up in New Jersey and um, so Scranton was the furthest I had been from a large body of water. So when I interviewed here, I thought, well, the Midwest, I don’t really know.

And when I got to the hotel, they put me right on the second floor overlooking Lake Superior. It was beautiful. It’s like being on an ocean. It’s really amazing. 

David Archer: Yeah. That’s wonderful. What’s one thing you miss about Marquette while you’re away? 

Susan Estler: I miss the people. Um, you know, I also miss the. Um, how cordial the people are as well.

Um, it’s just a really nice pace of life here. And, um, so when I leave this area and I go into more urban areas, um, you know, having grown up in New Jersey and also in the Tampa Bay area, living there for a while, um, you know, there’s a certain pace of life and [00:04:00] it’s. Your heartbeat just slows as you go over the Mackinac Bridge, um, onto the up.

And, um, it’s one of my favorite drives. I get to drive along Lake Michigan and then I cut up and go along Lake Superior, um, to get to Marquette. So I really, uh, enjoy the views and just how beautiful it is. 

David Archer: Yeah. Yeah. Uh, and what’s one thing you always take friends to do when they visit you? 

Susan Estler: Well, we always go out to eat and we always go to one of the breweries, and then we always go for a hike, um, or a walk, uh, along Lake Superior, depending on what their skillset is.

David Archer: Yeah, yeah. Sometimes 

Susan Estler: bikes, you never know. 

David Archer: Okay. Yeah. And so there’s a good brewery scene then in Marette? Yeah, 

Susan Estler: very much. Very much. 

Susan Estler: I think another thing that really stands out, um, is the artistic talent, the musical talent that we have here for such a small community. Um, people are really creative and they’ll have a day job and then know, play guitar at. You know, one of the local, um, breweries or something like that, or there’ll be an artist and they’ll have their artwork at one of the galleries that we have here.

So, um, it’s just a really creative group of people. Um, and just a really nice community. 

I noticed that, um.

The state level tourism organization, Pure Michigan has been promoting slow travel recently, and I was wondering how you think Marquette’s [00:07:00] experiences kind of match that mindset? 

Susan Estler: Well, you know, I think the nice thing is, um, especially with everything going on in the world, that there is, um, just.

Taking a slower, um, pace to your vacation. Uh, so rather than going to seven places in six days, you can go to maybe two places and really immerse yourself into the community. Spend some time and enjoy the moment. I think that’s the most important thing about slow travel. 

David Archer: Interesting. Yeah. Yeah. A less frenetic pace.

I suppose 

Susan Estler: correct and that you really immerse yourself and you get to spend time within the community instead of running from point A to point B and seeing the largest ball of twine or something like that. You’re, you know, you are really experiencing the destination. And I think the thing that’s nice are those personal interactions that people have.

Um, [00:08:00] and those little, um, little things that you remember in your mind, uh, as far as travel is concerned. 

David Archer: Yeah. Those, uh, memories that you can make when you’re really paying attention to the places where you go. Right. Exactly. Yep. How many, about how many visitors come to Marquette each year? 

Susan Estler: We usually have, um, somewhere around about a 1.3 million maybe, um, coming through the entire county.

Wow. So, um. Some of that might be, those are overnight stays, and so some of that might be people who are coming for other reasons, but that’s, you know, a rough estimation of how many people. 

David Archer: And so how, how has that been changing in recent years? Like, has that, uh, always been the case since you’ve been there, or is that number growing?

Susan Estler: Well, I mean, it is every year kind of. I came in in um, 2018 and so 19 was pretty much a normal year. And then, you know, of [00:10:00] course you had covid and so people were traveling from all over. Um, we had two fraternity brothers. One lived on the west coast, one lived on the east coast. They met Marquette. Um. You know, you had a lot of families, um, and people who were working virtually.

So I called the summer of, I think it was 21 was the, or 21 of the two of ’em. Um, the summer of high heels and expensive cars because we had a lot, I saw women walking around Marquette with high heels on. Really doesn’t happen. And, um, and then very, very expensive cars coming through, which, you know, normally you have, um, utility vehicles and, and that type of thing, as opposed to, you know, sporty type cars.

So, um. Then as soon as [00:11:00] things kind of got back to normal, I guess, um, it kind of went back to normal and, uh, the number of people were less. And so we’re kind of into a normal flow. Although last winter we really didn’t have much snow at all, so that was kind of a problem as well. So it’s been a bit of a roller coaster just because of, um, global warming and, um.

You know, the winters have shifted and so activities have shifted as well. And so that shoulder season is becoming more and more important and um, possibly looking at other alternatives for activities during the winter months. 

David Archer: Can you tell me a little bit about any challenges that have arisen, uh, in these more unpredictable years recently? 

Susan Estler: Well, I, you know, I think it’s really a matter of adjusting things. Um, some and. Like this past year we didn’t have the ski marathon because there just simply wasn’t enough snow, and that was at the end of [00:13:00] January.

Um, but because east of us had gotten quite a bit of snow and north of us had gotten quite a bit of snow, somehow missing Marquette. But um, the next town over on Lake Superior had just like five feet of snow. And so. The dog sled race, um, we were a little concerned about, but um, because there was so much snow to the east of us and that’s where the race does actually go and then come back around.

Um, it all worked out. So, uh, I think everybody is adapting pretty well. And, um, you know, working with, with what we can and also looking at opportunities for indoor activities, uh, like arts and culture theater. We have a wonderful film. Film Festival, uh, in October, the Fresh Coast Film Festival, um, that celebrates all things Midwest and outdoors.

Um, it’s really, [00:14:00] it’s really a wonderful place here in Marquette. 

David Archer: Yeah, and I. You know, travel must affect local ways of life quite a bit with so many visitors and, and the things, the opportunities that are created as a result of that. Um, and I want to talk a bit about the respect Marquette coalition. Can you tell me what the goal of that coalition is and why it was put together?

Susan Estler: Yeah. Um, I started noticing some comments on, um, social media. Um. About visitors and things that they weren’t doing properly. And so I decided, uh, in 2022 to have Kathy Ritter, uh, from um, better destinations come in and do a charette. And so she did that and I gathered everyone that I had met over the course of.

Five years and put them all in a room. Uh, our [00:15:00] trails people, our municipalities, my board members, um. Pretty much anybody I could think of that had some involvement with tourism at some level and threw them in a room. And we started talking about what was really important, um, to the locals and what were things that we could do, uh, to make it a better experience for locals as well as for visitors.

And, um, so thus created respect. Marquette. Um, which then some of the people within the county felt a little slighted because, um, there’s Ping Nani, Marquette Township, big Bay, and so we added them. The county very soon after we created the coalition. So we’ve continued that with a quarterly meeting.

Uh, we sit down, have speakers with usually one person, um, from the coalition to talk about [00:16:00] their organization, what they have going on, and what’s important to them, and, um, how we might be able to all help and all row in the same direction. So that has proved to be, uh, successful for us. 

David Archer: Terrific. And you mentioned you were noticing some negative comments on social media, and I was wondering if you could gimme an example of what kinds of things people had been saying about visitors at that time.

Susan Estler: Well, I think the most poignant for me was a woman who had been born and raised and her family was from Marquette. Um. She was living elsewhere and went to a local location. They were having a celebration of life for this family member who had passed away. And, um, when she got back to her car, somebody had written, I guess in the, the dust in the car went home because she had a license plate from [00:17:00] out of state and Oh, wow.

Yeah, and it just made me really sad that this woman, and so she went on about. How upsetting it was for her that she was there, she was born and raised in Marquette, and that someone would have the nerve to suggest that she didn’t belong there. And um, so, you know, the interesting thing is I’ve been researching things.

50% of the people who come here to Marquette County are actually visiting friends and family. Okay. So, um. You know, the people, sometimes when it gets a little more congested and people are out, you know, the trees start blooming, the people start coming out, and are more active outside and they have their friends and family visit them.

And, um, so I guess just, uh, working to [00:18:00] educate visitors. Um. Some might not know where to go or how to proceed about doing a certain activity. Um, giving them guidance with that and also educating locals too. Uh, you know, there’s always the big debate between dogs and, you know, being able to let the dogs run and, you know, be dogs and other people who are petrified of dogs and want them on the leash like they’re supposed to be.

And according to Michigan law. They’re supposed to be on a leash if they’re out. So, um, there’s always that as well. So I think, you know, also following those seven principles from Leave, no Trace, um, those are obvious things, but we started branching out. Um, we’re doing, um, I. A Bark Ranger program for the, for the dogs.

So we have little bandanas that we’re gonna leave at the hotels and, um, bags for, you know, for their waste that they can pick up. And, um, also talking to the [00:19:00] school, uh, kids, um, here in Marquette County to educate them young, to get them, uh, used to following those principles and knowing what they should do and the right things to do when they’re out.

Um, exploring. 

David Archer: Interesting. Yeah. So the coalition is really trying to get everybody on the same page. Yes. Local town visitors included. Yep. Yeah, 

Susan Estler: definitely. Definitely. That is the goal. And we’re trying to do it in a friendly manner, um, and making sure that everybody feels welcome. I mean, I think that’s one nice thing about Marquette is everybody is welcome here.

Um, and it is, um, really a great place to visit. 

David Archer: Yeah. And, and a lot of this. It seems like it is about protecting the outdoors. You mentioned Leave No Trace, and you’ve got quite a robust website about this as well. Um, can you tell me about some of the principles that you’re trying to encourage? 

Susan Estler: I was afraid you would [00:20:00] ask that because it’s like, do I have my, my seven principles?

But, um, you know, certainly, um, making sure that you leave it. Uh, the way that you found it, if not better. Um, certainly, you know, making sure that you’re staying on a trail that you’re not, um, doing social trails. Uh, that’s one issue that we have in one area that, um, with our waterfalls, I. That we have just, 

David Archer: oh, what are social trails?

Yeah. 

Susan Estler: Oh, social trails are, you know, instead of following the existing trail, um, you wanna go to point B and you go directly to point B, creating another trail. And so what happens is that it creates erosion. Um. And, you know, it’s just not good for the area. And we’ve had that with, with one of our waterfalls.

It’s a really beautiful area, but, um, it just is, has too many people going everywhere [00:21:00] and not paying attention to taking care of the area. 

David Archer: It seems like many places have these particular spots in the outdoors where a lot of people will congregate and for whatever reason, maybe that’s because, uh, it’s been established for a long time, or maybe it’s because, you know, it’s, it’s a social media trend of the moment or something. 

Um. Are you finding that you need to sort of manage these hotspots around Marquette? Is, is that this as well? 

Susan Estler: Yeah, we actually, um, pulled it off of our, our waterfall map. Um, and we do not have it on our website. We’ve asked the state of Michigan [00:41:00] not to promote it. We have asked the Upper Peninsula, um, travel and Recreation Association not to promote it because.

You know, it just naturally gets people going to it. And if it continues the way that it’s going, um, that beautiful area that everybody loves is the trees are gonna start falling in and the land is gonna start eroding into the waterfalls. And it’s just, you know, I just, we just don’t want that to happen.

So we have pulled off, um. Some of our other things like, um, a popular thing is jumping off of BlackRocks, um, into like superior. So it’s a kind of a steep. Jump into very cold water, especially early in the season. And so sometimes, you know, it can be dangerous. So [00:42:00] public, uh, service has asked us not to be promoting that, and so we don’t.

And you know, one of the sad things like TikTok kind of wrecked it because so many people are putting it on TikTok, um, that you have this huge line to jump off and mm-hmm. It just, you know, then it doesn’t become spontaneous. It doesn’t, it isn’t really fun. Yeah. It’s like waiting for a ride, you know? I mean, it’s just, it’s just not just not the way it should be.

David Archer: It’s changing the character of what, what that place was. Right. Yeah. Definitely. Getting you out of the slow travel mindset. Yep. Yeah. Is so then, you know, dispersion sounds like part of the strategy here. Yes. Giving people other options. I. Um, yes. 

Susan Estler: Yeah, definitely. Um, promoting some places like Ishpeming and Nani have been working very hard on their, um, neighbor or their communities and business has [00:43:00] been moving in.

They want part of the action too. There’s a beautiful little ice cream shop called Cone, um, in Nani. They’re doing some, uh, renovations on the outside of the building. Um, there’s a brewery in Nani as well. Some great restaurants are coming along as well. Um, Big Bay has a bunch of stuff going on, so.

They want part of the action too. And yeah. You know, where visitors are, money is, and so that helps to build their community and helps to keep, um, a vibrant community. 

David Archer: Yeah. And you know, it sounds like maybe a win-win for Marquette in some scenarios too, right? Right. Yeah. Developing other experiences.

Keep people moving around a little bit. 

Susan Estler: Well, that, and it is funny because that was the one thing that I noticed when I first got here was looking at social media people. The locals were sending everybody to three spots. And it’s like, yeah, we [00:44:00] have a lot more to go. And they’re like, well, we don’t want anybody to wreck it.

And it’s like, but by sending the same people sending everybody to three spots, you’re wrecking those spots and they’re beautiful spots and we’ve got a lot of room to roam. And one of the gentlemen who’s involved with um, uh, downwind sports, uh, mentioned that, you know. If you’re a local, you know, you can go five minutes and be, and not see another human being.

You know where those places are, 

David Archer: right? 

Susan Estler: So, um, you know, maybe not promoting all of those places, but actually spreading people out up toward Big Bay and, um, going toward ish Ping and Nani, um, definitely gives people another experience and another reason to come back. 

// END CLIP //

David Archer: I noticed on the respect Marquette blog, there are a few other areas, uh, of interest as well, and one of them is cultural awareness. Can you talk a little bit about that?

Susan Estler: Yeah, definitely. We’ve been, um, trying to work in, um, consideration for the indigenous people here, the Ojibwe people. Um, and there is, um, a beautiful set of sculptures that are down the seven grandfathers, um, that are part of the Ojibwe culture. And, um. Those were done by a gentleman who is from Grand Rapids.

Um, he is, he’s indigenous as well, and did these beautiful sculptures in natural stone that he found, uh, here in the upper peninsula. So those are an installation. There’s going to be a cultural [00:22:00] trail that goes along the water, and certainly points that, um, point out. You know, the history of the native people here in the area.

David Archer: Yeah, that’s, that sounds like a really interesting, uh, new experience. Can you tell me about what has made this coalition successful? 

Susan Estler: I think the thing that I really love and one of the things that I love about what I do are the connections that are made.

And nothing makes me more happy than to introduce two different organizations that then start working together, um, because they find a commonality or they find, um, that one person is solving another, uh, person’s problem. And, um. So I’ve seen that blossom. Uh, you know, it was [00:23:00] amazing to me when we had that first meeting that a lot of these people had never met each other, but yet I had met them all in a matter of, you know, three, four years.

And I just kind of put them all in one room and I. So now we have different, um, organizations working together, um, on projects, uh, partnering for grants and things like that. So it’s really encouraging and getting, um, input from all of our different partners is great too. 

David Archer: What’s one thing that you hope Travelers can take away from this story or from, you know, the knowledge of respect?

Marquette coalition’s work. 

Susan Estler: Going back to slow travel and just taking the time to notice your surroundings, taking your time to notice things that are important to the people who live there and respecting, uh, their lifestyle. And, um, that [00:24:00] is the reason why you’re there.

You’re there to experience a different pace of life, um, and different people. 

David Archer: Yeah. And I was gonna ask what. You think this project says about the kind of place that Marquette County is and uh, yeah. Local values and that sort of thing? Yeah, 

Susan Estler: I think that, um, that is something that’s very important to the people who are here, um, coming in and being respectful, um, of the area.

I think most people do try to be respectful, but maybe they’ll learn a couple different, uh, things that they might. Take away with them and carry on to their next destination that they go to. 

David Archer: Yeah. That’s the idea, right? Hopefully, yeah. The concepts and principles can spread. Yeah. Um, if you look ahead, you know, five or 10 years, what do you want travel in Marquette County to look like?

Susan Estler: Hmm. I think, um, just, I wanna keep it so [00:25:00] that it is that slower pace of life. Um. And I think just by virtue of where we’re located, the fact that it isn’t easy to get here. You know, you’re two and a half hours from most, um, cities, um, you know, five hours from Green Bay or four hours from Green Bay. And, um, so I think keeping that natural beauty, um, the fact that Lake Superior is the underpinning for everything that’s here, um.

And just understanding the culture of, and keeping the integrity, um, and the personality of all the different places that we have throughout the county. 

David Archer: Yeah. Yeah. And what do you hope that visitors can do to help that positive vision come along? 

Susan Estler: Well, I mean, first off would be just being aware of your surroundings.

Um, being sure that you [00:26:00] are. Uh, you know, picking up your trash, the obvious things, you know, being respectful of the area. And, um, I think also too, just appreciating the different cultures that we have throughout the county. Um, you know, there’s Big Bay and that is, um, a very special place. It has a Thunder Bay Inn and, um, it’s just really.

You know, it’s just unique. And then we have ish Ping and Nani. Um, there are all sorts of bogs and, you know, all of the different little nooks and crannies and the birding that we have here is great. So I think keeping that, um, that blend of nature and, um, special culture, I guess. 

// INSERT CLIP //

David Archer: As you look around the world, what kinds of places or sustainability solutions inspire you? 

Susan Estler: Well, certainly Copenhagen and what [00:51:00] they’ve been able to do, um, you know, bend, Oregon, um, and, um, a lot of the places up in, up in Canada to the west coast of Canada, um. You know, rebels Stoke and, and I mean, there’s just a ton of really terrific places to take inspiration from and, um, to take a look at, uh, what they are doing.

So I think, you know, just looking around the world and, and certainly, um, you know, Queenstown too, um, is they’ve really done a great job as well. Um. So, you know, always being able to pull from different areas and look at how they’re doing things and maybe incorporating it with us. 

David Archer: Yeah. Yeah. Uh, and for our listeners on the Travel Beyond Podcast, we’ve been able to feature many of those places, including Queenstown and, and [00:52:00] Bend, uh, and some of the others you mentioned too.

Um, do you have any last advice for other people working on, um, changing visitor behavior or the way people. Travel to a destination. 

Susan Estler: I think, um, just showing some grace and showing some appreciation, um, for different people. Um, but being firm in, uh, requires people when they come to a place to be respectful.

Um. Our residents very much appreciate Marquette and Marquette County and what we have, and being able to preserve that is probably one of the most important things that we do. 

David Archer: Okay. And if you wanted your community to know one thing. If, if you could speak to them all at one time in the same room, what would that be?

Susan Estler: It would be that 50% of the people [00:53:00] who are coming to Marquette County are visiting friends and family. So the people that you might be upset with or impatient with are probably friends or family. You have a 50% chance of friends and family of someone you probably know because this is a really small community.

So just take a deep breath. And, um, show some grace. 

David Archer: Yeah, that’s good advice. Thanks so much for being here with me today, Susan. I really appreciate it. Susan Estler: Thank you.