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Munising Falls
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Munising Falls is a very pleasant and easily accessible waterfall at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Visiter Center, 2-3 miles from downtown Munising. The falls are about 50 feet tall, and while the volume of water is relatively low, the setting—the end of a narrow canyon—is quite nice. Munising Falls are wheelchair accessible. The falls are adjacent to the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Visitor Center, and are heavily visited. As recently as the late 1980s, you could walk around, behind and underneath the falls—the rock overhang is quite deep. The photo to the left was taken from that location. Since then, the park service has installed boardwalks, and closed off the trail behind the falls. I've been told that this was done because the Park Service's insurance company was worried about rocks falling on visitors heads. Regardless of whether that's true or not, you are now quite constrained as to where you can go, which makes your visit a lot less fun. In the winter the falls are not visited nearly so much as in the summer, but whenever I've been there, the parking lot has always been plowed, and the path to the falls has always been well-trampled. A large column of ice usually forms around the falls during the winter. Portions of the trails are blocked off to keep you from getting so close as to be in danger from falling ice. AccessibilityMunising Falls are part of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, and are managed by the National Park Service. They are open to the public, year-round, at any reasonable time of day. I'm sure there's some sort of limit on visiting hours, but I've never personally gone to the falls and found them to be closed. The falls are wheelchair accessible. The parking lot is paved, and always plowed in the winter. The trail is paved at the start, and has some boardwalk sections closer to the falls. At a fast pace, you can get from your car to the falls in only a minute or two. When I last visited in the winter, the snow on the trail was well packed, but someone on a wheelchair might have had trouble with it. Bottom LineMunising Falls are on my short list. You really should take the time to visit at least once if you are traveling through or near Munising. If you're like me, you'll be frustrated because you can't walk around underneath (and risk slipping on the mud<g>), but these are beautiful falls, and well worth the visit. |
