Misty Bond Falls

Posted on by farlane

misty-bond-falls-by-yanbing-shi

Misty Bond Falls, photo by Yanbing Shi

Gorgeous photo from Bond Falls in the western Upper Peninsula taken back in October of 2014. GoWaterfalling’s page on Bond Falls says (in part):

This is the best single waterfall in the Western U.P, and the second best waterfall in Michigan. If you are in the Western U.P., possibly on your way to or from the Porcupines or Copper Harbor, this is a definitely worth a stop.

…The main drop is 40 feet high and 100+ feet wide. Above the main falls are a series of cascades and rapids that must drop a total of 20 feet. The water level is controlled by a dam, and a steady flow over the falls is maintained for scenic reasons. Of course during the spring melt the flow is much higher.

View Yanbing Shi’s photo bigger and see more from Michigan and elsewhere in his Landscape slideshow.

More Michigan waterfalls and more fog & mist on Michigan in Pictures.

Manganese Falls on the Keweenaw Peninsula

Posted on by farlane

manganese-falls

Manganese Falls, photo by John Gagnon

GoWaterfalling’s page for Manganese Falls says in part:

Manganese Falls is a steep cascade falling into a narrow gorge. The gorge is so narrow that it is actually hard to see the falls. There is a well marked overlook for the falls, but trees mostly obscure the falls. The overlook is perched on top of a sheer cliff, so do not even think about climbing over the fences for a better view.

It is easy to get to the top of the falls and you can look down the gorge. Even better views of parts of the falls can be had from the far side of the gorge. A large stretch of the main drop is visible. Getting a shot of the base of the falls would be very difficult. First there is a large pool at the base of the falls surrounded by steep walls, with apparently no dry places to stand. Second getting down there would be very difficult and dangerous.

Manganese Falls is located along Manganese Road just south of Copper Harbor. The road is paved, but steep in places. The falls are less than a mile from town.

Read on for more including some visiting tips and alternative viewing ideas.

View John’s photo background bigtacular and see more in his Rivers/streams slideshow.

More waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures

Rainbow Falls and the Waterfalls of the Black River

Posted on by farlane

Rainbow Falls Ottawa National Forest

Rainbow Falls, Ottawa National Forest, photo by John McCormick

GoWaterfalling’s page on the Waterfalls of the Black River Scenic Byway explains that this section of the river is Michigan’s waterfall alley:

The Black River Scenic Byway is located in the western corner of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Dedicated in 1992 as a National Forest Scenic Byway, it starts just north of Bessemer Michigan and ends at the Black River Harbor in the Ottawa National Forest, following the Black River on its way towards Lake Superior.

Along the way it passes five main waterfalls, as well as some minor ones. The five main waterfalls are all located on the last three miles of the river before it reaches Lake Superior.

The waterfalls are Great Conglomerate Falls (profiled last week), Potawatomi, Gorge, Sandstone, and Rainbow Falls which is:

the last of the main falls on the Black River before it enters Lake Superior…The waterfall has carved out a large pothole. Most of the river falls into the pothole, but some of the water, depending on how high the river is, goes around or jumps clear over this hole.

Head over to GoWaterfalling for more pics, directions, and info about the falls in the area.

Check out John’s photo bigger, see more in his Michigan Waterfalls slideshow, and definitely follow John’s Michigan Nut Photography on Facebook for lots more like this shot of nearby Gabbro Falls, also on the Black River!

Many more Michigan waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures!

Waterfall Wednesday: Great Conglomerate Falls on the Black River

Posted on by farlane

Great Conglomerate Falls

Great Conglomerate Falls, photo by Gray McCormick

GoWaterfalling’s entry on Great Conglomerate Falls says (in part):

The first of the five main waterfalls on the Black River. This waterfall is named for the large piece of conglomerate rock that divides the two segments. It is hard to see all of this waterfall at once, but that is no reason not to visit.

Great Conglomerate Falls is the first of the five main waterfalls on the Black River Scenic Byway. Here the river slides down 20 feet around a large chunk of conglomerate rock, hence the name of the falls. It is hard to get a picture of the full waterfall from the observation area. The two segments of the waterfall are pictured separately below plus a composited image of the entire falls.

Read on for directions and info about other nearby falls!

View Gary’s photo background big and see more in his Black River slideshow.

More Michigan waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures!

Get away from it all at Alder Falls

Posted on by farlane

Alder Falls Marquette Michigan

Alder Falls, photo by David Marvin

GoWaterfalling’s page on Alder Falls says this waterfall:

…is located about 20 miles north of Marquette on County Road 550. This is Canadian Shield country and the falls is typical of the falls found there. The falls is a slide about 30 feet high cascading down at a 45 degree angle. It falls into a deep, secluded and well shaded gorge. The gorge adds to the sense of wildness and isolation of the falls, even though it is only a mile from the main road.

Finding this waterfall is not trivial because Marquette does not seem big on marking their waterfalls or their rivers and creeks…

Upstream of the main falls are three more drops each around 5 feet high. The first of these is a short distance above the main falls and easy to reach from the north side of the creek. Upstream of that the creek has carved its way through an enormous rock, creating a narrow gorge. A second, not easily seen, drop is in the gorge. A third drop is beyond that.

Read more including detailed directions to what appears to be one of the more difficult waterfalls to get to at Go Waterfalling.

View David’s photo background bigtacular and see a bunch more shots from Alder Falls in his slideshow.

More Michigan waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures!

Behind O-Kun-de-Kun Falls

Posted on by farlane

Behind O-Kun-de-Kun Falls

Behind O-Kun-de-Kun Falls, photo by Michigan Nut Photography

See a view from the front and get directions in Don’t Lose Your Bowl at O-Kun-de-Kun Falls. The waterfall is in Ontonagon which came to be named in a pretty hilarious story:

The name “Ontonagon” is derived from the Ojibway word “nontounagon,” which means “I lost my bowl.” Local legend surrounding the name stems from the story that a member of Chief O-Kun-De-Kun’s band was washing bowls near the mouth of the river when she was startled by an unkempt stranger in a canoe. The woman inadvertently dropped one of the bowls into the river and exclaimed “nontounagon”. The white man took her declaration to be a reply to his question about the name of the area.

John writes that a few years ago, he didn’t see a way to get behind the wild and scenic O-Kun-de-Kun Falls, but he found a way this time … and got a nice shower in the process!

See his photo bigger and view & purchase photos at Michigan Nut Photography.

More Michigan waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures.

Taking the plunge at Shining Cloud Falls

Posted on by farlane

Shining Cloud Falls

Shining Cloud Falls, photo by Paul Wojtkowski

GoWaterfalling shares that Shining Cloud Falls is the largest and one of the wildest backcountry waterfalls in the Porcupine Mountains State Park:

You will have to hike at least 5 miles in to see the falls, and another 5 miles to get back. If you are looking for a good long day hike this is a winner. In addition to the main falls there are also a number of smaller cascades, and whatever route you take there is lots of wilderness scenery.

The total drop of the falls is about 20′. The falls consists of two parts, a slide on the left, and a plunge on the right. In higher water the two parts merge, but in lower water the two parts are distinct, as can be seen in the photos on this page. Plunge falls are rare around Lake Superior.

…Downstream of Shining Cloud Falls are a number of unnamed falls and rapids. Several of these are larger than some of the named falls on the Little Carp River. The last drop near the Lake is known as Bathtub Falls. If you are hiking upstream to the falls, do not be fooled by the smaller drops. The trail follows the river closely, but it climbs away from the river before reaching Shining Cloud Falls. There is no sign marking Shining Cloud Falls, but it is very distinctive.

You can read on for more including directions. FYI, “plunge falls” are those where the water descends vertically without contact with the surface.

View Paul’s photo background bigtacular, see more in his slideshow, and view & purchase his photos in his Especially in Michigan gallery at the-woj.com.

Lots more waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures!

Union Gorge Falls

Posted on by farlane

For some reason this post went to May 26th when I published it this morning. Not sure what I did, but I will try not to do it again!

Union Gorge Waterfalls

Union River Waterfalls, photo by David Clark

Every time I think I know every waterfall in Michigan, one more comes a long. Great Lakes Waterfall Adventures shares that Little Union Gorge Falls is:

Located inside an outpost campground off of South Boundary Rd. in the beautiful Porcupine Mountains State Park, the Union Gorge Falls slide shallow water over a 100 plus foot drop in a forested setting. It is a short hike to reach the start of the falls, and the trail follows the river bank for a quarter mile, intersecting several times with the Union Mine Interpretive Trail. Several sections of 10-25 feet highlight the area, thin water most of the year, most likely the best time to visit is in the spring.

…The first long drop has a small, three foot deep pool below it, adding to the calm of the area.

View the photo background bigtacular, see more in his Waterfalls slideshow, and check out David’s blog for a report with more from the Porcupine Mountains!

Big Eric’s Falls on the Huron River

Posted on by farlane

Big Eric Falls

Big Eric Falls, photo by Aime Lucas

Go Waterfalling’s Minor Waterfalls page says that:

Big Eric’s Falls is located on the Huron River east of Skanee. The falls consists of a series of drops, each of which are only a few feet high, but around 100 feet wide. It is named for Big Eric Erickson, a logger from the 20’s. In addition to the falls, he also has a road, a bridge and a campground named for him (although sometimes the name is spelled ‘Erick’, so maybe they were named for his father?). Big Eric’s Bridge Campground is right next to the falls. The falls are just below the bridge.

To reach the falls head east on Skanee Road until it ends. This is also the end of the pavement. Head right on Erick road for a mile until you reach the bridge. Beyond the bridge are rough, unpaved road, and some wild waterfalls such as Forty Foot Falls. Big Falls, a much larger drop on the Huron River, is several miles upstream.

View Aime’s photo background bigilicious, see more in her Michigan Waterfalls slideshow, and be sure to follow her on Facebook!

Lots more Michigan waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures.

 

Breaking Through at Middle Hungarian Falls

Posted on by farlane

Breaking Through at Middle Hungarian Falls

Breaking Through, photo by Eric Hackney Photography

The Hungarian Falls page from GoWaterfalling says:

Dover Creek tumbles overs a series of falls on its way down to Torch Lake. Two of the falls are around 20 feet high, and the last is a 50 foot drop, which is spectacular when the water is flowing. Unfortunately these falls are often nearly dry in the summer.

There are three falls 15 feet or higher on a half mile stretch of Dover Creek, plus a couple of smaller drops. In the spring time, or after some good rains, these waterfalls are very impressive. Unfortunately the creek has a very small watershed, and the falls are often reduced to trickles.

The three main drops are usually referred to as the upper, middle and lower falls. The upper falls is around 20 feet high. The water spills over an irreguarly shaped cliff into a small gorge.

Downstream of the upper falls is a dam and artificial lake. Below the dam are a couple of smaller drops, and the middle falls. The middle falls is also about 20 feet high, and is perhaps the most scenic in lower water. The cliff face here is smoother, and the water is not segmented the way it is at the upper falls. The middle falls is also the easiest to reach and there are plenty of good viewing spots.

Head over to GoWaterfalling.com for directions and info about the other falls!

Eric says that this photo shows that that Spring is at least trying to show up. Check it out bigger and definitely follow Eric Hackney Photography on Facebook!

More waterfalls on Michigan in Pictures!