Tahquamenon Falls is actually located in a town called Paradise.
In planning this trip, I was along for the ride in that I didn’t plan it. Not one bit, but our trusty travel planner just nailed it, and this day at Tahquamenon Falls was my favorite of the trip.
We arrived in Paradise the day before we planned our big hike because we wanted to hit the trails early since we knew it’d be a long day. So we moseyed on over from Mackinac, stopping at Sault Ste. Marie to ride the locks and have lunch with Gaston. After that we popped by a lighthouse to learn about Lake Superior’s many shipwrecks and do some rock collecting the night before, still just peeking into the days of trees and nature that lie ahead.
But, yes, rock collecting. Who am I?
We started in the Upper Falls, grand as they are, tinged in copper and minerals that gave it a red-golden sheen.
We set off on our hike to the slower falls, smiles in tact, with the promise of playing in some waterfalls when we got to the Lower Falls.
And play we did!
Have you ever played in a waterfall? It might be one of my new favorite things.
Ever see the backside of a waterfall? This is it!
The whole thing reminded me of my six-year old self doing the same in Allegany State Park and why I needed to always have a pair of creek sneaks on hand.
After adding in a little rowboat adventure, we faced our way back up the trail to the Upper Falls. As is goes, the hike back just seemed like forever and a day and we were very glad when we finally landed our tired behinds at the brewery for some drinks and nosh.
It was a good day.
A few notes:
We decided to hike from the Upper Falls to the Lower Falls and back with a swim break in between. While the trail itself is 8 miles or so round trip, with parking lot to trail time and other wayward steps it ended up being a 12 mile day. We were beat, but glad we did it. In non-Covid times, you can hike one way and take a shuttle back to the start. No shuttles were running while we were there, so we were on our own. You will be, too, so plan accordingly!
While there is a brewery at the Upper Falls, the lower falls has a little shop and snack bar in case you need some food to power you back to the top. I got ice cream, duh. There are also open, clean restrooms in which to change in/out of swimwear, so no need to strip on the trail unless that’s your thing.
I highly recommend wearing some sort of water shoes if you swim in the lower falls. The rocks are VERY slippery, and I was very afraid of losing my feet under me. I have these awesome Keens, but anything with a grip will do. Still, be careful!
You can swim at an opening on the trail close to the lower falls, which many people did, or rent a rowboat for $20 to get you to an island to swim in a less crowded area, and more ‘in the falls.’ We opted to do this because we wanted to get in the thick of the lower falls, and also it was less crowded there which we wanted because…Covid.
Don’t want to hike? You don’t have to! You can simply drive and park at each end of the falls for a quick photo opportunity. You will need a Michigan State Park Recreation Passport to get in.
