The Black River National Scenic Byway: Rainbow Falls

This is a continuation of a series of travel posts of a camping trip I took with my family back in July.  To start at the beginning, go HERE.  The rests of the posts, in chronological order, are HERE, HERE, and HERE.

After we enjoyed our picnic lunch and spent some time on the beach of Lake Superior, we headed back down Black River Road to see more waterfalls.  Our next waterfall on the road, which is actually the last waterfall on the road, was Rainbow Falls.  We would hit this falls next before finishing the day with Sandstone Falls (next week's travel post).

Now, Rainbow Falls has two trails you can take to reach it.  One which is off Black River Road, and the quickest way to reach,  and the other which begins back at Black River Harbor.  We didn't take that one because we knew we'd be driving right past it on the way out.  However, in hindsight, we wish we would have taken that trail because you get better views of the falls from the opposite side of the river.  Your view is obstructed from the trail we took.

There are lots of steps again to reach the viewing decks of Rainbow Falls,  200 to be exact!

But the steps are certainly worth it for the views are gorgeous.  It's about a half mile walk from the parking lot to the falls.

Of course my husband and son always live life dangerously and leave the viewing decks and trails to explore further.

 Even Jason and Ashley were more adventurous than I.  Ashley climbed up the rock (the one that obstructs your view) to get this picture of the falls.

My husband and son walked way above the falls to get this shot.  So I guess your view isn't so obstructed from this side of the river if your willing to leave the trail and viewing decks.

Remember the picture above of Ashley perched on the rock?  Well here she is, along with Jason, as seen from the other side.   I have no idea how my hubby got down there to take this picture.  I was sitting obediently and safely on a bench on the viewing deck.

 There is a smaller deck closer to the bottom of the falls that gets you closer to the water.

My son Jordan standing above Rainbow Falls.

And here is the "obstructed view" of rainbow falls as seen from the viewing deck.  There is a rock right next to the falls and viewing deck and you have to peer around it to see the falls.

So why is it called "Rainbow Falls" you wonder?  Because the waterfall creates much mist, which on a sunny day creates a constant rainbow.  But unfortunately we were there on a cloudy day so we did not see any rainbows.

I read three different versions of how high these falls are, so I'm not sure which one is correct. One said that the height of these falls is 30 feet and the crest varies depending on water level.  The other said it had a 45 foot drop, and yet another said a 20 foot drop.  I have absolutely no idea why everyone had a different measurement.  I've never encountered that before!

My son ventured off the trail to get to the base of the falls.  This picture was taken looking down at him from one of the viewing decks.

Here he is again, peering back at us before he goes off exploring beneath the falls.  I think I called out to him to be careful, or to come back, not that he would listen anyway. :)

Next week I will finish our day in the on The Black River National Scenic Byway with a post on the last falls we visited:  Sandstone Falls.

Until then, Have a Great Day!  Amy

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