MLive says: “The Upper Peninsula is full of waterfalls, all unique and worthy of a visit. Canyon Falls is certainly special in its own way. You can check out the falls and then follow the trail to a gorge that is often referred to as the "Grand Canyon of Michigan." The box canyon is unusual for Michigan and luckily this destination is easily accessible to visitors. You can also take a breather here at the newly renovated roadside park.”
September 3, 2019
Canyon Falls are gorgeous, and I never would have stopped there had it not been for this article.
The North Country Trail runs along the Sturgeon River right through Canyon Falls, so you could hike in and actually camp in the area if you wanted to. We accessed it from a walking path at a roadside park. Most roadside parks in the U.P. have vault toilets and benches - this one had waterfalls.
It had just rained the night before, making the trail along the falls and the rock formations around them rather slippery. However, the rain had made the plants explode with color, and the falls swell and rush. The sky was still overcast, making the forest rather dark. That didn’t keep me from climbing around and photographing this gorgeous spot, though.
I spotted some signs of fall while walking around: asters in bloom, red leaves fallen on the ground, changing leaf colors in the trees…it was a nice preview of what’s coming soon.
I really appreciated this spot; it felt a little magical while we walked around and explored all of the places where water had carved out the Earth. I wish we could have stayed all day and hiked and climbed and explored - however, it started raining again, or at least trying to, and we weren’t keen on another soaking. We made our way back to the car, appreciative of this really beautiful roadside stop to break up our drive.
We drove all the way into the actual town of Baraga and stayed at Baraga State Park for the night. It’s right on L’Anse Bay in Lake Superior, which is quite pretty. There are some gorgeous wetlands as your drive into the town, too. However, this State Park is situated on the only major road into and out of Baraga. There were trucks and cars going by, less than 20 yards from the campsite boundary, all day and night. We were feeling worn out and splurged on the available mini cabin that was available that evening, instead of sleeping in a tent. I’m really glad that we stayed in the mini cabin, or I’m not sure I would have slept much that night with the sounds of traffic so close by. The cabin also gave us an opportunity to hang up wet gear and clothes to dry out, as well as a place to make microwave popcorn.
There isn’t much by way of food around Baraga - we popped into four different establishments before deciding we’d just go to the grocery store to grab some snacks for dinner, which was heinously expensive. Definitely stop for food before getting to this little town, unless you want to eat exclusively hamburgers! No offense, Baraga.