Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park - East and West River Trail

In last week's travel post, I shared that my husband and I went to the Upper Peninsula to visit the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.  In that post I covered the Lake of the Clouds, the Overlook Trail, and the Summit Peak Observation Tower.  This week I will show my favorite part of the park the East and West River Trail.

This is probably one of the coolest trails I've ever been on.  It is such a diverse trail because you see many different waterfalls, forests, the scenic Presque Isle River, great viewing decks, and the king of it all...the Great Lake Superior!  Wow! That's a lot to see in one trail!

The East and West River Trail is a 2.3 mile loop.  You start on one side of the river, cross over the river and go on the other side, then you cross back over again.  So you get two different viewpoints!  

The suspension bridge is at the start of the trail, depending on which side you start on.  It is such a beautiful bridge!  Look one way and you see the river and a waterfall, turn around and look the other way and you will see the river emptying into Lake Superior.

Here is a view of the waterfall as seen when standing on the middle of the suspension bridge.

And here is the opposite view looking at Lake Superior.

And here is a view of the suspension bridge itself.

We got off the trail briefly just so we could go down to the lakeshore to see the shoreline of Lake Superior.  It was only a short detour.

Once back on the trail, we got off it right away to explore this area.  You are able to walk on this rock and get so close to the water.  Some people were swimming, although there were a lot of warning signs not too.

It was fun to get in the center of the river and get great views without getting wet!

There are three major waterfalls on this trail along with several other smaller falls and rapids.

On the east side of the trail you are walking mostly through a forest on natural ground, whereas the west side is a lot of stairs and boardwalks with viewing decks.

The views are stunning, but different, on each side of the trail.

It just amazed me how many different and beautiful waterfalls on this trail there were to see.

In the picture below you can see one of the viewing decks on the other side.

You cross over the river at the end of the trail by using a vehicle bridge on the south boundary road.  The West River Trail seemed a lot more civilized and manicured than the East River Trail.

But if you don't like steps, this might not be the side of the trail you prefer!

The viewing deck overlooking Manabezho Falls.

The next few photos just show again all the board walks on this side of the trail.  They have a beauty of their own I think.

I hope you enjoyed our adventure in the Porcupine Mountains, I sure did!  Next week I'll begin a new travel series of our 2020 summer vacation.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

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