Waterfalls of the Keweenaw

Conditions:

Wet, cool, rainy

Companions:

Emily, Katie, Logan

Vehicle:

Saturn Vue

Katie, Emily, Logan and I were heading back from a wedding in Appleton, WI on Sunday and decided to visit Canyon River Falls. The park was on the way, and we had heard good things about the ease of access of the area. We pulled off into the roadside parking area and, after visiting the restrooms, started down the path.

It had been raining on and off during the entire trip back to Michigan, so it was no surprise when we found this area to be a bit soaked. I ventured down an old side path and found the initial sign for the falls, but as I went through thigh-high grass I got completely soaked. With the wetness of the area, we were pleasantly surprised by the high waters of Sturgeon River when the trail started to run along it's side.

We stopped several times to get pictures of the area and to console the puppy, who was not a fan of the wet area. Also, we ventured off at random times along the trail to look at a pretty rock or tree. Overall, it took us a fair amount of time to get to the first falls and the overlook.

The falls were very impressive that day, with slight mist rising out of the gorge in a dreamy manner. The rock walls of the canyon were wet and dark, and the entire scene was very striking and unrealistic. We then spent a bit of time hiking further down the canyon side, but turned around before we got to the middle falls.

On the way back we also lagged about looking at the mosses and vegetation along the trail and growing atop of the rocks. Thanks to the rain, everything looked dark and shiny-new, so the entire trip was a treat. We didn't plan on visiting any other falls for the rest of that day, so we were able to take our time and really enjoy these falls, which were more then worth the stop.