Winter Wonderland at the Tahquamenon Falls

Winter Wonderland, photo by Kiran Bhat..

Kiran says that he absolutely loves the Tahquamenon Falls. I confess that I do too.

He’s just begun posting his UP Trip slideshow where you can see it bigger.

Need more? How about the Tahquamenon Falls in winter slideshow from Flickr or more of the Tahquamenon Falls from Michigan in Pictures?

Bond Falls on the Ontonagon River

Bond Falls 04, photo by Jeff Milton

Jeff writes:

This is an image of the lower Bond Falls from a recent trip to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Bond Falls, close to Bruce Crossing, is my favorite of the waterfalls that I have visited in Michigan. If you visit Bonds falls early on a summer morning, there is often an dramatic fog.

This is one of his gorgeous Bond Falls set (slideshow). I had a nearly impossible time deciding which one of these to feature – be sure to check them all out!!

GoWaterfalling.com has this to say about Bond Falls on the Ontonagon River:

Bond Falls is in the western U.P. on Bond Falls Rd, east of Pauding MI. This is the most impressive waterfall in Michigan with the possible exception of Tahquamenon Falls. 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.

Bond Fall is a Michigan State Scenic Site. The site was renovated around 2003. The old parking area was upstream of the falls, and a steep concrete stairway led to the base of the falls. The new parking area is near the base of the falls, and a level boardwalk leads you to prime views of the falls. The area is not quite as wild looking as it once was, but it is accessible to everyone. The trail on the east side of the falls is still wild with some steep rocky climbs. There are other trails that go off into the woods, and there are campsites nearby.

Click through for more, including a short video of Bond Falls. You can also check it out Bond Falls on the Absolute Michigan Map!

Tahquamenon Falls double exposure(detroit)

Upper Falls, photo by rckrawczykjr.

Ralph recently returned from an autumn trip to the UP (slideshow). When I saw his double exposure of Tahquamenon’s Upper Falls, I knew I wasn’t going to be waiting any longer to give a shout out to the next Exposure.Detroit show.

Exposure.Detroit Presents!

When: November 9th 7pm-10pm
Who: Cris Rea, Joe Alisa, Ralph Krawczyk Jr., Rhonda McElroy, Sue Fraser
Where: The Bean & Leaf Cafe, Royal Oak

If you can, be sure to show up to see work from Ralph and the other very fine photographers in the show!

See more Tahquamenon Falls photos on Michigan in Pictures and don’t miss other photos in the Michigan Fall Wallpaper series.

Fall Color Tours: Pictured Rocks & Munising – Newberry – Grand Marais

Miners Castle – October 2006, photo by Lars Jensen

Let’s jump over to the eastern side of the UP for the next color tour of Munising – Newberry – Grand Marais … and the Pictured Rocks.

The highlight of this tour is of course the stunning Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore., (be sure to check out Lars Jensen’s other Pictured Rocks galleries). Travel Michigan starts you heading east from the town of Munising (Munising.com has the best links, but you can also see the Munising Visitors Bureau). Be sure to check out Munising area waterfalls including Horseshoe Falls (photographed so well by Amy Kilroy – see her Pictured Rocks set for more!). Regarding Munising, Michigan.org says:

This harbor town of about 2,500 is the departure point for regularly scheduled, 2-1/2 hour, narrated Pictured Rocks Boat Cruises as well as chartered Skylane Air Tours that offer a birds-eye view of the scenery. Hikers can tackle all or a portion of the 43 mile Pictured Rocks segment of The North Country Trail (NCT), a national scenic hiking route from North Dakota to New York.

I’ve never done the Air Tour (check that link above and scroll down for the video!), but the boat cruise offers an amazing look at the Pictured Rocks that’s well worth the time and cost! The Pictured Rocks is my favorite place in Michigan, and I’ve covered it pretty well on Michigan in Pictures and on Absolute Michigan. The same is true of Tahquamenon Falls, so let’s say that Grand Marais is a cool little harbor town with its own brewery and a great little diner car diner and skip over to the Tahquamenon Logging Museum which features all kinds of logging era memorabilia and special events including Lumberjack Breakfasts and a Harvest Fest the 3rd weekend of October.

They don’t stop at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point (’cause that’s another tour), but you can definitely make the short detour to check this very cool museum out. Then it’s back south to Newberry (recent photos at visitnewberry.com) and then west to the Seney National Wildlife Refuge (Wikipedia entry) and the gorgeous Seney Stretch of M-28. Although this highway has been called “mind-numbingly monotonous” and “the state’s most boring route“, it’s actually pretty beautiful in the fall! (photo to the right is H-58 in Fall Color by James Phelps – part of his great Pictured Rocks set).

Here’s a link to a map of photos from the Munising / Pictured Rocks area in the Absolute Michigan pool!

Just so it’s clear, these fall color tour entries are produced by Absolute Michigan & Michigan in Pictures using the great information compiled in Travel Michigan’s Fall Color Tours as a starting point. We’re trying to add to what they’ve put together – not rip them off! As always, if you have links to information or photos that we missed, comments or reports, post them in the comments below!

Don’t miss our Michigan Fall Wallpaper series and see more of Travel Michigan’s Fall Color Tours.

Tahquamenon Falls

Tahquamenon Falls, photo by A. Runyon.

Well, about a month ago I blogged this photo of the Mackinac Bridge.

Apparently, Amanda found this on the other side. She has another equally amazing photo right here, and you can read more about the Tahquamenon Falls on Michigan in Pictures.

I have to add that it’s a beautiful thing when someone makes a photo like this available in “background size”. ;)

Waterfall Hunting in the Upper Peninsula

Ripley Falls, photo by We Are CS.

It’s probably fitting that I came to today’s post in a roundabout fashion. I was checking out UPLiving.com, a new addition to Absolute Michigan. On their photo page I saw this gorgeous photo of Ripley Falls. A quick check of The Google found a page on the Hiawatha National Forest site that itself seemed lost from their waterfalls page titled
115 Waterfalls of Michigan’s U.P.:

It’s been said there are two things man never tires of watching – fire and falling water. Hence the fascination of fireplaces and waterfalls. Fireplaces, fortunately, are found everywhere in the land. But waterfalls are found only in very special parts of the land. One of these is Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. There are more than 150 waterfalls across the length and breadth of this rugged peninsula – enough to satisfy any collector of cascades. Some are tall and stately like the Laughing Whitefish. Some are broad and massive like the mighty Tahquamenon. All are spectacles of white splendor … A few of the Upper Peninsula’s falls are located conveniently along well-traveled highways. More often the falls are the dramatic climax to a rewarding hike through the woods and in every case they are well worth the effort involved in getting there. Some waterfalls are located on private property permission should be secured from the owner to cross the property. When large land holders such as paper, utility, mining, and forest companies are involved, the public is usually welcome to use the forest lands, unless posted against entry.

Ripley Falls was listed as #42 with just the terse note Ripley Falls, on Ripley Creek behind school of Ripley. Springtime flow only.. The Keweenaw Local Resource Guide has better directions, but still not much to say.

Then I stumbled onto Wayne Premo’s Waterfalls from Hunt’s Guide to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Wayne tells the tale of how he lost the Michigamme Falls and then says:

As an adult I started to explore the Upper Peninsula further. The state’s Department of Natural Resources county maps became my guide. All the squiggles marking falls became increasingly intriguing. Would any of these be as impressive as Michigamme Falls, the one I had lost? I charted my plan of attack.

My goal was to search out every squiggle and photograph it, so that then I would have seen every waterfall of consequence in the Upper Peninsula. At the time, I was in no hurry and the task did not appear formidable.

So go to Hunt’s Guide and read Wayne’s tale and check out some of the waterfalls he has photographed. Then think about bagging a few waterfalls this year. You can click the photo to the right to go on a Flickr tour of Michigan waterfalls.

And after all this, what does Wayne say about Ripley Falls? Only that it’s one of the few falls not on the DNR maps.

Fitting.

Upper Tahquamenon Falls in the Fall

Upper Tahquamenon Falls, photo by lluusz.

This photo was taken on October 16, 2005. I don’t speak Chinese, but I’m guessing this “上塔库梅珑瀑布” says something about what a glorious sight this is.

Michigan State Capitol & other Michigan Landmarks

Michigan State Capitol, photo by Larry the Biker.

Of his set of 50-odd photos titled Michigan Landmarks, Larry the Biker writes: Si Quaeris Peninsulam Amoenam Circumspice — “If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.” Things you will only see in the Great Lake State!

In addition to famous landmarks like the Mackinac Bridge and the Tahquamenon Falls, the set includes some lesser known landmarks like the Horton Bay General Store and the Pontiac Silverdome. With many of the photos, Larry also includes links to information about the subject. Click the barn to view the set!

Sunday Study: Upper Tahquamenon Falls

Lay aside your cloak, O Birch-tree! Lay aside your white-skin wrapper, For the Summer-time is coming, And the sun is warm in heaven, And you need no white-skin wrapper!”Thus aloud cried Hiawatha In the solitary forest, By the rushing Taquamenawfrom The Song of Hiawatha

photo by Allan M