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Hunts' Guide to Michigan's UPPER PENINSULA

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PORCUPINE MOUNTAINS STATE PARK
POINTS
OF INTEREST

Park Visitor Center and nature center. Reccommended first stop at the Porkies in season for tips from helpful staff, audio-visual and pamphlet background on natural and human history, detailed hiking and topo maps, guided nature hikes ... more

Lake of the Clouds Overlook. One of Michigan's most famous views looks down from a dramatic Porcupine Mountain ridge onto the lake and Big Carp Valley. Glorious fall color. Now accessible to all. ... more

Union Bay. The most popular and easily reached Lake Superior beach in the Porkies, it's accessible by car and even has a concession stand by the large modern campground. ... more

Summit Peak Observation Tower. It feels like you're floating above an undulating sea of green here at the park's highest spot ... more

Presque Isle River Waterfalls. Swinging footbridge leads across the river to Lake Superior river mouth known for steelhead run. Warm wading at the beach. Waterfall aficianados consider the three falls here among the most U.P.'s most beautiful for the water patterns and the old-growth forest setting. ... more

Overlooked and Greenstone Falls. Two fine waterfalls, reached by fairly short hikes through old-growth hemlocks and past a gorge, are well worth the walk ... more

Explorers Falls. For those up to a long hike into the Porkies, the reward is experiencing the finest waterfall on the park's Carp River. ... more

Hike to Trap Falls. A 3 to 4 hour hike though hemlocks, hardwoods and big pines to a remote and picturesque waterfall ... more

Along the North Country Trail. Not the Porkies' most scenic trail, but its most remote. Connects to Black River waterfalls, Trap Hills, and Sturgeon River Gorge Wilderness Area beyond the state park. ... more

Long trek deep into the Porkies. A recommended 3- to 4-day backpacking hike deep into the Porkies, through old-growth forest, past waterfalls, along the Little Carp River. ... more

Abinodja Falls, Ogimawke Falls & Ogima Falls. Just south of the state park, a marvelous series of waterfalls for those willing to take the trouble to find them ... more

PORCUPINE MOUNTAINS STATE PARK

Overlooked and Greenstone Falls

Wayne Premo

Near Greenstone Falls is one of the park's simple cabins hikers can spend the night in.

These two fine waterfalls, reached by fairly short hikes through old-growth hemlocks and past a gorge, are well worth the 1-hour hike near a road.

Beautiful Overlooked Falls is in an area of old-growth hemlocks at the base of a gorge. The waterfall delicately drops into a pool formed by mossy rocks. It's reached by a fairly level, 1/4 mile trail from the end of the dead-end Little Carp River Road off the west end of South Boundary Road.

Dan Urbanski

Nestled among big hemlocks, beautiful little Overlooked Falls is a delightful destination for an easy hike (under an hour) to introduce visitors to the old-growth forest up close.

For a somewhat longer hike, Greenstone Falls is a mile farther down the picturesque Little Carp River Trail. It's another graceful falls in a mossy glade within a dark, soft conifer forest. This is an interesting trail to hike because of its many small bridges and boardwalks.

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