Copper Falls State Park is often ranked among Wisconsin's top state parks, and it's easy to see…read morewhy. Located in the Northwoods of northern Wisconsin, the park's highlight is the Doughboy Trail, a well-developed two-mile loop that offers excellent views of both Copper Falls and Brownstone Falls. The trail is easy to follow, well-maintained, and includes several scenic overlooks. Because of its distance--several hours from cities like Madison--I recommend combining a visit with other Northwoods attractions. A great option is to stop here while exploring the Apostle Islands or the Bayfield area. Once inside the park, follow the main road past the ranger station until it ends at the parking lot, where you'll find restrooms and the Doughboy Trailhead. This is a beautiful park and well worth the stop, especially if you plan it alongside other northern Wisconsin adventures.

As we traveled north, we stopped at several state parks, and Copper Falls stood out as one of the…read moreprettiest--often noted in reviews for having the highest waterfall in the area. We were able to park easily and walk a short, fairly easy loop to reach the falls. The view of the waterfall was beautiful, though the trail itself isn't very shaded. Thankfully, the weather was mild during our visit, which made for a pleasant stop. Parking was plentiful, and the park overall felt accessible and well maintained. A worthwhile stop for an hour or so if you're exploring northern Wisconsin.

Beautiful and strenuous hike up to the dome. One of my favorite hikes in the area. At the end of…read morethe hike, the short walk to the falls is always a nice treat.

Please be prepared with walking sticks if you need it is a short path the beginning is very easy…read morebut as it goes on you'll cross muddy river bed with lots of slippery rocks a few times, so just saying be prepared it's not a walk in the park(The beginning is groomed and wide shortly after it does get real). The view is fantastic the waterfall is beautiful just be prepared with a little bit of bug spray and perhaps a bug net over your face seem to of worked for plenty of people. I will not post a picture of the view from Saint peters Dome because that's for you to see for yourself it's gorgeous!!!

Called Interstate Falls because it's directly on the MI/WI border, this spot is only about a 10…read moreminute drive from Ironwood, MI, and only about a 10 minute hike from the parking lot. We saw lot of fun fungi on our hike in and spotted some folks foraging some of the mushrooms and even overheard them saying that they had found some chanterelles. It was an easy hike in on the main path, or you can switch it up to some more tretcherous terrain slightly closer to the falls along the stream (hiking poles recommended if you do so, especiallyif it's been raining recently). It appears that they recently redid all of the steps down to the main waterfall, but there are probably the equivalent of a 3 or 4 story building worth of stairs, which definitely winded a member of our party experiencing some health issues. The falls themselves are about about 15 feet high and there are some miini waterfalls along the a lot of the path on your way in as well. Beware: Google Maps may send you the wrong way. Based on a sign on someone's driveway on the route that Google told us to take that says it's private property, I gather that Google regularly tries to route folks through what it thinks is a public road but is clearly private property. I feel like this happens pretty regularly and that's that Google maps also seems to be unaware of unaware of incredibly major road construction projects. Its vexing to say the least. These lousy directions cost us about 15 minutes, so be sure to double check your route and enter from the MI side, not the WI one.

This is a relatively easy, well maintained, and beautifully scenic trail…read more Whether or not you're able to actually see falls, really depends on the level of water flow. We were here during a dry spell and so there were no falls to be seen. That said, the trail itself is gorgeous and the end (right before it loops you back toward the parking lot) has a stunning view of Lake Superior. Pro-tip: There's more than a view of Lake Superior. There's a staircase down to an outcropping of flat rock that while we were there folks were using as a jumping off point to take a dip in the lake! It's pretty protected and makes for a great swimming hole. We didn't get in the water but enjoyed watching others take the leap. Get to it!

A very pretty short hike through a nice scenic gorge. We never did see any falls and barely any…read morewater in the creek (guess it is a very dry summer). The end of the trail leads to a great view of the bay and a place to stretch out in the sun. The boardwalk on this hike is one of the nicest and sturdiest boardwalks I had ever encountered. This thing is made to last. Even without any water falling it is worth the time to see this place.

Hidden gem on the South Shore of Superior! Located just out of Port Wing on Big Pete Road, you can…read morehave the best of both worlds: clean unpopulated beach on Lake Superior AND a beautiful boreal forest! Park along Big Pete Road or walk in...you won't regret it!

We hiked the Lakeshore Trail from the Meyers Beach parking lot. (National Park Service. $5 parking…read morefee; $2.50 if you have a Senior Pass or Access Pass. May, 2023). As noted by others, this is a launch point for kayaks to launch for views of the sea caves and cliffs. We were at this location twice in late May, 2023, and national park Rangers were there on both days (Wednesday, Friday) ensuring that kayakers were prepared for the rough and cold waters, and to provide guidance to hikers. There are clean vault toilets at the location. Regarding the Lakeshore Hike, we did about 2.2 miles of the hike, returning on the same trail to make it about 4.4 miles roundtrip. The trail continues to a campground site (I believe NPS reservations are required) but we didn't go that far. The first 1.8 miles are largely inland, without views of Lake Superior. Of this segment, the first 0.7 miles are almost completely on a double plank boardwalk that goes over swampy land in parts. It requires some stepping up and down on planks, following terrain changes. After you cross a service road at 0.7 miles, the trail alternates between plank boards and regular trails. As you approach the crevasse at 1.8 miles, there are quite a few ascents and descents wherein you go down to a stream-bed and then back up. Some of these are steep but have logs to help with footing. The stream crossings all had sturdy boards or bridges to cross. At 1.8 miles, you reach the crevasse area with views of Lake Superior. Take a look on both sides to see sea caves and the deep crevasse. There are benches here too so it made a great lunch spot. Be careful not to get too close to the edges. It's a long way down! Beyond the crevasse, walk another 0.4 miles to the "basin". This stretch is relatively easy (flat) walking with spectacular views. My husband, who has been hiking in the Himalayas recently, found the entire trail to be easy. For me, I'd characterize it as moderately challenging. On the positive side, there is very little elevation change, so I wasn't huffing and puffing. However, I have balance issues, so I didn't particularly like the footing for the ascents/descents to the stream beds nor all of the roots on the trail. Some of the steps up and down, even on the boardwalk, were also a bit too high for my short legs! Having walked with hiking poles and an occasional hand from my husband helped. Finally, remember bug spray. The mosquitoes are active. 4-star rating overall instead of 5 due to distance required to walk to get views of the sea caves and mosquitoes. 5 stars for the Park Service.

You have to come check out the sea caves on the shoreline of Lake Superior. Meyers beach is the…read morelaunching point for kayaks. It's also the location for the hiking trail. The views from the water are beautiful! I highly recommend the water instead of the walking trail. There are multiple vendors you can rent kayaks and wet suits from. You can even take a guided tour. We personally, have our own kayaks and decided to do our own trip. The DNR do sit at the beach and give you the whole spiel on safety and risks. It is recommended to use sea kayaks due to the rough waters of Lake Superior. We have used normal lake kayaks and used good judgement on the water/ weather conditions. Both times were just fine on the normal kayaks. Just be careful. The waters are freezing all year-round and if you do go overboard near the caves there's no good spot to pull off. Check out my pics of the stunning caves!

My girlfriend and I enjoy visiting beautiful parts of the country and going on day hikes. Even…read morewhen these hikes are only a couple miles long, I panic and begin to despair towards the back half. So it's important that we find the right mix of natural beauty and for my sanity's sake, brevity. Fallison Lake Nature Trail is a 2.5-mile loop trail rolls through rich birding terrain. The lake is surrounded by a mixed coniferous/deciduous forest of balsam fir, hemlock, red pine, white pine, sugar maple, white birch, and large-toothed and trembling aspen. The trail crosses bogs and a hemlock glade. Some of these ancient giants of the Northwoods are hundreds of years old. The longest loop of the trail goes all the way around 50-acre Fallison Lake: we took a shortcut and skipped the final bog to cut down on my whining!

This is quite an amazing and well-maintained and a beautiful trail. I take the leg from the pink…read morecottage road to downtown Minocqua as it exits right at the USPS. Really beautiful views and a great activity with your family and fur legged friends.

Ok, I am NOT a "trail" person. My idea of getting in touch with nature is generally looking out the…read morewindow while comfortably seating in an air conditioned cabin. The Bearskin trail is amazing, you guys! Like, really really great - it's mostly flat (yes, thank you God), well maintained and easy to navigate. It's an old railway right of way and easy to access right in downtown Minocqua. The main trail is roughly 18 miles with an extension that gets you all the way to Tomahawk. The trail itself is wide, smooth and passes through beautiful forests. You'll ride over lots of bridges and beside peaceful lakes. The only sound you'll hear is the wind and the birds. As a bonus, there are several places to rest (picnic tables) and clear signage to local places to grab a bite. The Mister and I did 10 miles one way (with the help of an e-bike) and despite being a couch potato, I honestly loved it. I'd definitely come back and look to do more!

Great hikes with sightly waterfalls. We started at the lake and made our way inward. According to…read moremy gps watch, the distance was higher than what was on the map we got at the ranger station, so we ended up having to double back to the truck and driving to see the last 3. Word of warning - Gorge Falls lookout was under construction and inaccessible unfortunately. We did have a hard time locating the ranger station but did tag it's location on Apple Maps so hopefully will be there in the future :)

Black River Harbor campground is patrolled by a pot-bellied, 420 approved, often shirtless "host"…read morewho guards his campground with dogmatic vigor. An adult in our party tripped and fell down an incline while shirtless site host "Shrek" passed by without a word or offer of assistance. We were promised firewood delivery by Shrek. Big surprise, it never came. The dagger came at dusk when our party of three, including a 1yr old on mom's shoulders and a senior citizen walking a small dog took an unmarked path from the toilets which led to Shrek's swamp (I.e. host site). As they quietly crossed, shirtless Shrek burst from his camper and gave an informative forty second lecture on how they should have turned around and how crossing other people's site is "a big 'no-no". The young mom and grandfather both thanked him for his lecture and left. Apparently, courtesy and basic appearance are not requisite for hosting a campsite. Otherwise, no water, no firewood,

We had a lot of fun at the park. The facilities were very clean and nice. We stayed in campsite 32…read moreand really enjoyed it. The campsites have a good amount of foliage and feel private. The park feels remote considering you have to take a car ferry and drive to the other side of the island to get there. Firewood was available for $9 a bundle up by the office. We hiked a few of the trials--lagoon ridge train was not kept up, there are signs alerting of this. The walk by the beach and the water was very nice. The flies were bad when we went, and so were mosquitoes, but it probably had to do with the time of year! We went into town several times, they have one small grocery store and a few bars and restaurants. Overall a great experience and would go back!

We came here on the ferry from Bayfield (super easy, but recommend having your car on the ferry if…read moreyou plan to head out here) and had a great time hiking. I was a little confused on where I was supposed to park for the trails, but there's essentially one road so you just kinda figure it out as you go (I went the wrong way the first time, maybe a 2 minute detour). We parked near the beach access area, and started off on the trails. We took the Woods Trail to the Point Trail to the Bayview Trail -- and it brings you right back to the same place. I recommend doing it in this order (which I think is counter-clockwise?) versus the reverse. While the Woods Trail is in a lovely, lush green woods, after seeing the rocks and lake sites along the other trails, the Woods Trail would be a very boring way to end. Starting with the Woods Trail, it's only better as you go along. I hiked with my senior large dog, and he did just fine on the paths. Pretty clear markings and nothing super treacherous if you don't venture out on to the rock formations. Dogs are not allowed on the beach or boardwalk (big sad face), so we went back to town after the hike. Along our way, we saw a small black bear crossing the road! Quite an adventure. Depending on date and time, might be limited food options on the island, so have a plan and check out your options ahead of time.