Miners Falls is another great, relatively easy hike that can be done by all skill levels and I…read morewould highly recommend it as well during your Pictured Rocks trip, either before or after you make a stop at Miners Castle as well. Clocking it at 1.2 miles, it takes about half an hour to complete out and back. Miners Falls is way bigger and grander than Munising Falls, so it's definitely impressive and worth the hike out. You aren't able to get as close to it as you do to Munising Falls, you view it from 2 different viewing platforms across a wide river, but it's still impressive just the same. The hike is more intensive. It's mostly shallow, sometimes steeper in areas decline through forest on the way there, but that just means that you know the way back is going to be a constant uphill, which is a bit killer. Total elevation gain here is about 150 feet. Great part about this hike is that the trail is so WIDE, tons of space to walk and be distant from other people, not that this trail was even all that heavily trafficked by any means. When you get to the falls, the first viewpoint you get to really doesn't give you a good view. For both viewpoints, you are already looking down at the falls, and the first viewpoint, which is much higher up, is blocked by trees and at too high of an angle for you to appreciate much of anything. So it's imperative that you head to viewpoint #2, which is down one final series of steep stairs. From this viewing platform, you get a great, impressive view of the falls, get a moment to take pictures, catch your breath, before you embark on the not-so-long-but-sort-of-feels-long-because-it's-all-uphill journey back up to the parking lot. I was definitely breathing hard by the time I got to the parking lot, but it was a great, short hike to do! It really didn't hurt either that there was gorgeous fall foliage all along the road leading into the Miners Falls parking lot and spots of color along the entire hike as well. Can't be anything but happy when looking at fall rolling in! :)

Okay so here is another decent/worthwhile waterfall to visit within Pictured Rocks National…read moreLakeshore. This is Miners Falls. And...it's really easy to find and hike to. From the trailhead it's a 0.6 mile walk along a gravel path. And the 0.6-mile stroll to Miners Falls takes you throughout an incredibly pleasant and tranquil forest setting. Even before I arrived at the falls, I was grabbing pictures on the walk being immersed in lush green trees and vegetations of the woodsy outdoors. Miners Falls is about a 50-foot waterfall that's one of the more majestic flowing falls you'll find in the small town of Munising, Michigan...and Munising is sort of the host town of Pictured Rocks NL. In Munising, you'll discover a bunch of other scenic waterfalls like Alger Falls, Chapel Falls, Munising Falls, Mosquito Falls and Horseshoe Falls to name a few. You can plug all these waterfalls into Google Maps on your phone to specifically locate them. Cell phone reception in Munising works just fine. Now, one of my issues with this Miners Falls and I know I'm nitpicking...is that once walk the 0.6 mile...you can only view the falls from an observation deck. And...this overlook platform had guardrails installed as high up as your waste. So...when trying to take optimal photos of Miners Falls for yourself and or family...you're sort of held hostage to these guardrails. It's sort of like you're being photobombed by a stranger but instead it's really the tiny platform and guardrails that taint the experience. Most visitors here at the overlook were taking selfie pics, which for myself...isn't worth the time. So, I gladly took a picture or two of Miners Falls before returning back towards the trailhead. I guess just in the end I'm a narcissistic person and I want myself in every picture to officially claim that I've "been there, done that", lol. Oh well, this miniscule platform vista point and the guardrails were out of my control. Here was another frustrating aspect... I was visiting back at the end of May 2021 and the parking lot and hike to the falls were pretty busy. In fact, it was congested enough to the point that there was a crowded line of people just waiting to step onto the observation area. And because the platform barely allowed tourists to step foot on it together at one time, the wait was about 10 minutes to get that photographic memory. Wow I thought to myself...this is a popular part to the Pictured Rocks NL area. And just a side note...when I was here this past summer, it was free to explore and hike to all the waterfalls. But for the 2022 travel season, starting on March 1, there'll be a $10 fee for visitors which will eventually over time get raised to $25. So, yes...people are coming. National parks, monuments, lakeshores, state parks, hikes and trails are all getting busier each year. Be prepared for maybe eventually losing that true essence for being outside in the heart of nature. Tourists are coming in droves and it's not stopping anytime soon. Anyways...finally, I got my time at the overlook deck for a quick couple of photos before yielding to the people behind me. Miners Falls was pretty impressive when looking down upon it. I just wished that the hiking path continued down towards the base of the falls because in my opinion...there's nothing like looking up at a scenic waterfall as the prime attraction within a scenic backdrop. Welp...lol, sorry for all my venting. From here at Miners Falls, I continued onto Munising Falls, about a 9-mile drive away. And yeah...once again, Munising Falls was simply a 0.5 mile walk each way to and from an observation deck, but at least the platform there allowed more space to accommodate tourists. Lastly, although I never found true fulfillment from the viewing platform looking down at Miners Falls, I still enjoyed the hike through the forest and simply getting a chance to witness another waterfall here at Pictured Rocks Lakeshore in the UP - Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Unlike any other place on Lake Superior, Pictured Rocks offers the opportunity to explore miles of…read morepristine beaches, hike over 100 miles of trails, and experience the serenity of the northern hardwood forest. In the spring, a new world appears along trails carpeted with the soft beauty of wildflowers. Summer gives way to warm basking days. Blinking lights of orange, red, and yellow signal the wonder of change in autumn. In the winter, the raw windy beauty of snow frequents the days though periodically the snow blazes forth with sunlight. We visited in September and the weather was gorgeous. There is a nice visitor center where you can get all the information about the park from the Rangers at the desk. We drove out to see some of the views that were close and then we took the boat tour and it was outstanding. There are several cruises so you need to visit the cruise boat site and pick the one that works for you. It is a must to go on a sunny day. The ride is smooth but, chilly after summer.

You can look at pictures of Pictured Rocks and think, "Wow, that's beautiful," but seeing it in…read moreperson is a completely different experience. It honestly makes you wonder how nature created something like this. The cliffs and colors are absolutely mind-blowing, and learning about the geology behind the different rock colors makes it even more fascinating. There are so many ways to experience this place. You can take a boat cruise, kayak along the cliffs, hike, relax on the beach, or even ice climb in the winter. The nearby towns are fun to explore too, so it's easy to make an entire trip out of it. This is one of those places that sticks with you long after you leave.

There is truly so much to do here, we barely scratched the surface…read more Our favorite spot was the Log Slide Overlook. We had a perfect sunny day so the water looked incredible. The walk to the overlook is nice and shady since you're walking through the woods. The overlook area is very small, so be respectful of those around you and take turns viewing the beauty. We also stopped at the Pictured Rocks overlook, they have flush bathrooms, a ranger on site, and recycling!! Miners beach was also pretty neat, a popular spot even in rainy weather.

Located right on Indian Lake and home to Kitch-iti-Kipi is Palms Book State Park. This state park's…read moremain attraction is Kitch-iti-Kipi and I find it to be a relatively small park outside of that freshwater spring. I can imagine that most people come here just to check out the spring as there is a separate entrance directly to the parking lot for Kitch-iti-Kipi. Granted, I didn't take the time to explore the rest of the park, but just looking at the map, I could tell there were one or two more trailers, but other than that not much else. We were camping at Indian Lake State Park, so after visiting Kitch-iti-Kipi, going out on the raft and back, we headed back to our campground to hike the trailers at Indian Lake State Park.

Beautiful place!! Highly suggest to anybody looking to sightsee! Cute little gift store as well.read more

Miner's Castle is a nice gentle hike for folks who aren't big hikers, with an upper viewing (in my…read moreopinion the better of the two), and a lower viewing point. Parking is limited, so we circled until someone left; bathrooms were more plentiful at the Miner's Castle than at National Lakeshore, but they did have some there as well. We loved the beach at the National Lakeshore; clean sand and the beautiful, Caribbean-like waters you expect from Lake Superior. Water is cold, but was so refreshing after a day of hiking and sun! Miner's Castle is a one and done spot for us, but we will definitely be back to the beach at the National Lakeshore!

I didn't visit Miners Beach, but Miners Castle is a must-see! Finally, I got to see in person the…read moreview that the vast majority of Pictured Rocks photos are of and it definitely didn't disappoint! You can view Miners Castle from an upper viewing deck and a lower one. The upper deck is only 250 feet away from the parking lot, the lower deck is about 1000 feet further and all downhill, meaning a pretty extensive uphill trek on your way back up that definitely gets the heart pumping. Both are highly worth it since the lower deck gets you literally a few feet away (you could say...a *stone's* throw away...heh) from the Miners Castle rock formation, which is very cool, but the best view - the classic view - is from the upper deck. Loved it! Very cool-looking bathroom set of buildings as well in the parking lot, alas they were closed so I wasn't able to see how they were inside haha.

In my opinion...you can include Wagner Falls as one of the simple yet worthwhile stops within…read moreMunising, Michigan to enjoy a quick waterfall setting. I tell ya, Munising, Michigan is like this tucked away little town in the UP - Upper Peninsula of Michigan and it is the host for many beautiful waterfalls. The waterfalls may not be on a grand scale...but for me...once I had the chance to admire one scenic waterfall, I then became obsessed with getting to witness them all, lol. I'd say in total this Munising area that's situated within wonderful Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore has about 5 - 10 quality waterfalls all right near each other including... - This Wagner Falls - Munising Falls - Miners Falls - Alger Falls - Chapel Falls - Mosquito Falls - Horseshoe Falls Wagner Falls is extremely easy to visit and arrive at. I plugged "Wagner Falls" into Google Maps on my phone and was guided here to the parking lot without an issue. To be more precise, the falls are located just on the outskirts (maybe 2 miles at most) of downtown Munising. It's a casual 1/2 mile stroll along a flat level pathway to an observation deck overlooking the falls. That's it. It's not hard whatsoever and maybe I needed 30 minutes in total walking to and from the falls. A couple of extra points I'd like to make... I came here to Wagner Falls in early afternoon time back in the middle of June and what was really nice about being here was that I had the sun at my back which made for ideal picture taking conditions. There were no glares or shadows from not having to look into the sun from the overlook deck. So...I'd say to avoid coming here in for morning times. Afternoons are best for lighting. The observation deck is pretty small so I actually had to wait in line for about 5 - 10 minutes for families in front of me to get their pictures in. This wait was actually common for a few other waterfalls I visited in Munising. I guess that's why this section of Pictured Rocks NL is so popular and why I believe going forward in 2022 the lakeshore now charges an entrance fee for tourists. Lastly, Wagner Falls is a cascading waterfall set in the forest. The falls drop into a shallow gorge which leads into a small stream flowing through the woods. Overall, the ambiance and walk here was quite pleasant and you don't really have to work hard to enjoy being out in the heart of nature. So for everyone heading on their waterfall excursions throughout Munising, Wagner Falls should easily be on their To-Do Lists.

Great little quick roadside jaunt to an upper peninsula waterfall. Mostly handicap accessible and…read morethe walk from parking to the falls is less than a quarter of a mile.

Great campground. All national park campgrounds at Pictured Rocks are now 100% online reservations…read moreso all the comments here about people stalking for sites are no longer relevant. Reservations can be made at recreation.gov six months in advance. Very poor if any cell service. The west "generator free" loop was mostly all tent campers and apart from wailing children, very quiet. Pit toilets, running (cold) water, and garbage bins (ignore what recreation.gov tells you). Short walk to the beach from every site; many sites are right above the beach.

This campsite is incredible and the pros very much outweigh the cons. We stayed at site 15 for our…read morefirst night and 26 for the second night. Site 15 is 1 of 2 sites that are non reservable until 4 days prior to your approval date, great for last minute planners! We were bummed we couldn't snag 15 for our second night because holy moly it was such a beautiful view. But it also ALL SAND so we had sand all over us and on everything for the 2 days we were there. Site 26 was alright, it's nice because you really only have your neighbors at 27 otherwise you're pretty secluded on the road but it is still bit wide open from the road, so lots of people walking by. Overall the campground isn't the most secluded but being so close to Lake Superior is worth it! The lakeshore campsites are definitely the best imo. I was bummed to see they had no recycling here and unfortunately only pit toilets but the toilets were clean and they had plenty of trash cans. The camp host was incredibly sweet and knowledgeable of the area.

Grand Island offers a bus tour! For those of us long past strenuous hiking or mountain biking but…read morestill wanting to explore Grand Island, there's a bus tour for day trippers! Experience and explore the highlights of Grand Island without worrying about mobility. The bus has a lift for mobility aides. Most walkways are plank board or firm gravel. Viewing area have plenty of room. The driver adjusts to the needs of the group. You get all the best of " pure Michigan " and then some. Yes, I'm talking about flies, mosquitoes, and no-see-in's. Dress accordingly and bring bug spray. Learn a bit of the fascinating history of Grand Island without over exerting yourself. Some of the nicest people you'll ever meet are in the main office. Surprise! They're also your ferry captain and 1st mate. Rich, the bus guide, is a lifelong local who loves the area and especially Grand Island. Ask him anything. He tells great stories. You'll see some fauna and a lot of flora. Overall, a most enjoyable excursion in Munising.

Based on other reviews we got lucky when it came to bugs...I do't recall even using our bug spray…read moreand we didn't have any issues. We visited the first week of September, so maybe we just got lucky. My husband talked me into biking the west rim, then cutting down the middle of the island back to the ferry. Around 20 miles. Our rental bikes were a bit tough to use with not much padding on the seat and gears that were difficult to use. My husband's chain came off at one point. The good news is that we made it in just over four hours - I was so worried about missing the last ferry at 6pm, but we actually caught the 5pm ferry. I would love to visit the island again and stay over night so we don't have to race a clock. The bike trails are tough! I'm a decent bike rider, but trail riding is tough for me. I actually was okay for the first 12 miles, but my legs and rear became sore, making the last eight miles tough. I'm super glad that I was able to complete the ride, and once again had we gotten an earlier start and didn't have to worry about catching the ferry back I think I could have relaxed and not been as worried about having to push my bike up and down some tough and washed out trails. The views on the west rim were amazing! I actually wish we would have just turned around and retraced our steps instead of going down the middle of the island to get back, which is mainly a dirt road for atvs. We will be back to explore some more and work on our bike skills!