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.

We planned a weekend trip to enjoy the Upper Peninsula and this was one of our stops. The scenery…read moreis worth hiking the trail. This was our longest hike with 6 miles but we did it! Make sure you bring supplies for mosquito and tick repellent. You also need hydration and snacks. Most of us have mosquito nets for our faces. They are needed leading up to the lake. There was plenty of parking available. However, because it is not a state park their restroom facilities are basically out houses. Come prepared!

Established in 1907, the Munising Rear Range Light was placed to work in combination with the…read moreMunising Front Range Light and is southwest of the front light. The rear light is on the hillside at the south end of Hemlock Street in Munising. Both lights feature a continuous red light. The rear range light is just over 30 feet tall, and with the style of window it had, it reminded me of something from an old space movie. The site, owned by Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, is open to the public, but the tower is closed.

This park is absolutely incredible... especially the falls area! We lucked out and were the only…read moreones in the area. Easy-moderate hike in and out. Definitely wear good shoes...passed several in crocs and sandals and they were really struggling.

Quick, free hike from street parking on Cleveland St. Entering the trail you first see Memorial…read moreFall. Follow the blue diamonds until it looks like you exit to road. Trail turns to left if facing road. Follow green diamonds. Easy hike about 1.5 miles moderate climbing w lots of roots and some narrow spots. Lots of humidity! Pack water and bug spray!

Established in 1907 along with the rear light, this active light features a continuous red light…read more The Munising Front Range Lighthouse is steel and stands 58 feet tall. By lining up the this light with the rear range light, mariners may navigate within the channel. In late 2011, work began to restore the keepers building to its original 1900s appearance. The site, owned by the National Park Service, is open, but the tower itself is closed to the public.

easy to see but odd to have it so far from the water and seemed to be in someones yard with shed in…read morefront of it.

Grand Island Harbor Rear Range Light's steel tower was erected in 1913 and was originally painted…read moreblack except for the front half of the upper portion of the tower (also known as Bay Furnace Light), which was painted white. It was first lit in 1914. We almost missed it on our trip because it is fairly well hidden by trees and sits on the opposite side of the road from the water. The range lights in Grand Harbor were electrified in 1941 and equipped with 25-watt, 110-volt lamps., however they are both now inactive. This tower is now managed by Hiawatha National Forest, and tours are given occasionally.

This was an awesome way to see Grand Island. Part tour and part thrill ride in a jet boat. Staff…read morewas very friendly and guide was very knowledgeable.

We had an amazing time with our captain Tim. He was informative, witty and gave us an awesome ride…read more Not your everyday boat tour! Chilly but oh, so much fun!!

This was a great experience. The staff was so helpful. We had Zach as our guide on the Ultimate…read moreTour he was such a nice young man and was very knowledgeable and told us great stories about each of the formations. He also took pictures of us. Captain Keith also did a great job getting us back to the ock using the sonar/radar since visibility was bad due to the smoke from the wild fires. I can't wait to go again!

My husband and I took a long weekend and had a great trip. The tour was amazing. The instructions…read moreand guidance were thorough and easy to follow. They are very safety conscience. Our guide was Sam (male, tall, mustache). He did an amazing job. He gave the story behind all the different rocks and legends. He also gave different food recommendations around town. He really made the trip fun and informative.

Living in munising for over 20 years I have a lot to say, however I will keep it as simple and…read moreshort as I can. So we will make it a game for all of you to sum up my review. :) we are at 5 stars and we will take away a star whenever something is neglected. 5 Star?- Munising is Gorgeous, it is one of the most pretty places on earth, however City Members and over priced Business make this a very demanding place not just for locals. You can have a pretty face, however what is the point if your ugly on the inside. for that reason it loses a star 4 star? The people overall are okay as far as people go, however the cost of food makes it hard for people to live in munising, people who pass by will be spending way more money also, however munising does not grant any special local discounts making it very hard to enjoy life in this town. Overall this town is too focused on money, rather then proper expansion and comfort with locals and business, example we have over 8+ coffee business in a town of 4000. 3 star? Now I do not hate this town, there is so many amazing things to see, however there is no entertainment what so ever, no theater, the bowling center is always on its own, no arcade, no real goat carts, not even a lazer tag anymore, looking at trees and lakes are wonderful however family and loved ones might want a step back and enjoy that indoor activity once in awhile. No indoor pool, no YMCA, they do have a gym however, sorry about your window, they are nice enough thou :) 2 Star? Wow we already are at 2 stars, they could of been better, however there is no Uber, Door dash, the bus system is okay, schools are great, however with the lack of support from the city many locals are forced to just endure, many places are closed for winter, making it very boring and hard to enjoy life in munising, even the bus has hard time finding workers for children to be picked up after school. Sometimes even needing the public transports help. There is no support for food delivery which would help older people and the sick and disabled. So that is a huge loss. 1 Star? I do not think it is a 1 star , honestly even due to the bad drug out break, it has got a bit better, however the locals are not the only one to blame , it is the city and the lack of attention to the above things I mentioned, I truly think if they just took the time to expand business , add entertainment, discount locals, add food delivery for Locals, organize business, (8+ coffee shops be crazy XD) they would start seeing a change for the better , however with how things stand this city is not a nice place to live, and is very expensive to visit . (Why do I still live in it then? because my family is here and I go where they go) Enjoy your stay and always beware the cash grab places... Enjoy the sites !

If staying in the Upper P .. Munising is a great place to stay a couple days. .. has alot of stuff…read morein or nearby to check out. Very close to castle rock, boat tour .. we did the riptide and loved it .. water falls, some free street art.. some restaurants .. free nature sancturary. huge sand cranes were walking beside the road .. they are huge. I guess they mate for life. check out muldoon for the local fav ... Pasties .. it's like a pot pie. very filling and the dessert ones are yum.

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.