Find Your Flow

Now’s the time to hit Northern Michigan’s waterfalls

By Lynda Wheatley and Kristi Kates | May 22, 2021

Michigan’s moniker — the Great Lakes State — is no misnomer. The five fabulous lakes surrounding our two peninsulas are the biggest and prettiest freshwater beauties in the world. But maybe a little like your favorite celebrity, lakes Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior sometimes feel like everybody’s beloved — as in, everybody in the nation and, sometimes, the world.

For those locals who long to lose themselves by beautiful but lesser-known waters — especially in a post-pandemic summer that’s likely to unleash even more outdoors adventurers than most years before — steer yourself to one of the state’s lesser-known but plentiful (and vertical) waters. More than 200 named waterfalls are here, some hidden deep in our forests and others just a short pathway’s walk from a parking lot. Though none are impossible to find, you’ll likely discover at trail’s end that few other people make the effort. If you ask us, that alone is worth the trip. Here’s eight to try:

AGATE FALLS (pictured)
The grand staircase entryway to a mermaid’s ball, perhaps? That’s one impression you might get when you see Agate Falls, with its many-layered “stairs” and rooster tails of descending water. Located in Ontonagon County on the river of the same name, these falls drop 39 feet over erosion-resistant sandstone, offering picture-perfect views from a variety of angles, including from a railroad bridge that spans the water.

TAHQUAMENON FALLS
One of the largest waterfalls east of the Mississippi River, Tahquamenon might be the most celebrity waterfall in the state. Its wide falls pour 50,000 gallons of water per second over its flat top, luring thousands of Upper Peninsula vacationers to its misty banks each summer and inspiring poets past and present to memorialize it. Mention of Tahquamenon Falls appears in Longfellow’s famed poem, “The Song of Hiawatha,” and in a song by Petoskey-raised Grammy-nominated indie-folk-electronica musician Sufjan Stevens. As for that red tint to the water — it’s not iron, as many think; it actually originates from the tannins in the cedar swamp waters that feed the falls.

MUNISING FALLS
Located in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, in the western Upper Peninsula, Munising Falls drop 50 feet over a cliff, making a pretty image with a surprisingly small amount of water. With this waterfall, the frame is what really makes the picture; the falls are surrounded by striking sandstone rocks, as well as plenty of foliage and trails that are fairly easy to hike. In the winter, the falls freeze into a grand ice column reminiscent of an icicle fit for a giant, which means awe-inspiring photos every season of the year. One note before you go: The Munising Falls Visitor Center is undergoing major rehab work and will remain closed this year, so plan your trip to Pictured Rocks and the falls (located just outside of town) before you go.

BOND FALLS
Also on the Ontonagon River is Bond Falls, which, as the name suggests, would make a dramatic exit for any super spy. These falls got their start the usual way but gained even more power when a nearby dam funneled more water into its environs. You can often spot Brook trout where the falls end, and you can enjoy the vistas from a picnic area below the dam and the waterfall. Less well-known than nearby Agate Falls, Bond Falls used to be considered the Ontonagon’s secret falls, but as word about their beauty has gotten out, many make a point to hit both Bond and Agate falls in a single trip.

MINERS FALLS
The Miners River in Munising gives way to Miners Falls partway through its journey, and the falls take up several different levels that can be viewed from two different platforms. This waterfall is especially pretty in the springtime as it’s surrounded by a wide variety of blooming wildflowers. Bonus: One of the trails to the falls is on the way to Miners Castle Rock, so you can enjoy both sights in one trip.

SABLE FALLS
One mile west of Grand Marais, you’ll find Sable Falls, tumbling 75 feet over cliffs and stone formations as it makes its way to Lake Superior a half-mile away. Climb up a couple hundred steps to the main viewing platform, and you’ll be rewarded with beautiful views: three tiers of falls in all, decorated with a hazy mist; a boardwalk allows you to take in both the lower and upper falls; and some wild rapids farther downstream on Sable Creek.

MANABEZHO FALLS
Part of the Presque Isle River, Manabezho Falls makes its way through its little corner of the Porcupine Mountains State Park as the largest of the waterfalls on the river, dropping 25 feet. Said to be named after a spirit god of the Ojibway people, the Manabezho is best representative of table or shelf falls, featuring water that cascades from its flattop surface directly to the pool below. Many branches overhanging the edges of this fall make for striking shadows in photos.

OCQUEOC FALLS
There’s only one major publicly owned waterfall in the Lower Peninsula, and Ocqueoc is it. Located in Presque Isle on the Ocqueoc River — one of the few rivers in the Lower Peninsula to flow northward — you can access the falls via the Bicentennial Pathway hiking trail. The shallow falls flow over limestone and sometimes show off a rusty tone similar to Tahquamenon but unlike those much faster and more furious falls, Ocqueoc is a favorite place for wading in the water.

For more information on waterfalls in Michigan, visit www.nps.gov.

AN UNDERWATER WATERFALL?
A training and research vessel called The Pride of Michigan was plying the waters off the shore of Mackinac Island back in 2007, taking soundings (a way to measure the depth of the water) when the crew made an unusual discovery: a 10,000-year-old waterfall formation embedded along an ancient and now-submerged river called The Mackinac Channel, a body of water that once flowed through the Straits’ current location, before lakes Huron and Michigan existed.

Further investigation showed that water flowed from west to east along the channel and then plunged 100 feet from a limestone cliff. Niagara Falls, by comparison, has a drop of 167 feet; so this waterfall would’ve been a fairly substantial one back in its day.

Today, “Mackinac Falls,” as it’s known, is a submerged geological formation, frozen underwater much like it was when it was absorbed under the waters of Lake Huron.