Waterfalls in Wisconsin
Wisconsin has a lot of waterfalls, but most of them are small cascades and rapids. I have been to most of the big ones. Most of them are found in the northern part of the state, which is a very nice area. If you want to get away from people, the forests of northern Wisconsin is a good place to do it-and you can see some great waterfalls while you're there!
Northern Wisconsin
Amnicon Falls (4+)
Description: After a long hiatus of visiting Wisconsin, I've finally returned to get to Amnicon Falls and it did not dissapoint. The falls area is quite small, but includes four named falls, as well as various large unnamed falls and rapids. Easy access to all, and an almost comical number of different parking areas makes this a quick visit. When I was here, it had rained a fair bit, and the falls were flooded, but they would look like that through much of the spring anyways. Just above the falls area, the Amnicon River splits into three branches, with the west and middle branches taking most of the flow. Snake Pit Falls is found on the west branch, Upper and Lower Falls are on the middle branch, and Now and Then Falls is found on the east branch. The latter gets its name because this branch carries very little of the total flow, and will only flow "now and then". A fee is required to enter the park, which is significantly higher for those coming from out of state.
Hiking Description: As mentioned above, there are numerous places to park, so I will include a map from the SPS below. There's very little walking here, and you can make a short loop of it by hiking the trails and a bit of walking on the park roads. Even this only surmounts to 0.5 miles total.
Total Mileage: Up to 0.5 total
Difficulty: 2/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: April 29, 2024
Date Last Visited: April 29, 2024
Rank: A+
Upper Falls
Lower Falls
Snake Pit Falls
Now and Then Falls
Map of the Area (Credit: WDNR)
Black River Waterfalls (2)
Description: The two waterfalls on the Black River are both in Pattison State Park, and include Big Manitou Falls and Little Manitou Falls. Big Manitou Falls is the tallest waterfall in Wisconsin. Little Manitou Falls, while much smaller, is still pretty large, and is located in another part of the park. There are two trails to these falls, and they are both easy.
Big Manitou Falls:
This falls is accessed from the parking lot here (46.535011, -92.123026). Head north on the paved trail, then carefully cross Highway B. Once across the road, the trail enters the woods and bends to the left. It remains paved the short distance to the overlook of the falls. It's awesome here. You should also hike to the other side of the river, because there's a great view from over there too. To get there, head back to the road, but don't cross it. Walk on the side of the road, heading east, for about 150 feet, then turn left on another paved trail. This trail leads to the river, above the falls. Very nice area here. Shortly, you will come to a footbridge over the river. Take this across and head left. The trail will turn to dirt, and you'll go up some stairs, eventually coming to another overlook high above the river, with a great view of the falls.
Total Mileage: 0.4 total
Difficulty: 2/10 (Easy)
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Little Manitou Falls:
While much smaller than Big Manitou Falls, Little Manitou Falls is still impressive and worth visiting. Drive a short distance from the Big Manitou Falls Parking area to the Little Manitou Falls Parking area here (46.521749, -92.127560). Head across the quiet road and pick up the dirt trail headed east. The falls will be encountered almost immediatley. Some easy scrambling will lead to the best views. Stairs lead to the top of the falls, and there's a nice view from up there too.
Total Mileage: <0.1 total
Difficulty: 2/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: May 2, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 2, 2021
Rank: A+
Big Manitou Falls South Overlook
Big Manitou Falls North Overlook
Little Manitou Falls
Copper Falls State Park (3)
Description: There are three waterfalls in Copper Falls State Park, and they are all very impressive. This is probably the single most impressive park in all of Wisconsin. The trail is easy and fun, so plan a visit.
Hiking Description: Start from the large parking area here (46.371725, -90.643092). Begin hiking on the North Country Trail, on the east side of the lot. The North Country Trail is a cross-country trail, and you're going to be hiking a portion of it, and then a portion of the Doughboys Trail to make a loop to all three of the waterfalls. I hiked this trail counter-clockwise, so that's how I will describe it. You will quickly pass by the visitor center, and right after this, the trail splits, with the Doughboys Trail going to the left and crossing a bridge over the Bad River. Instead, head right, staying on the North Country Trail, and save the bridge for later. This will bring you to the overlook for the first falls: Copper Falls, 0.25 miles from the start. This is the only waterfall on the Bad River, with the other two waterfalls being on the Tylers Fork River, a major tributary. By 0.4, you will turn hard right and begin following the Tylers Fork River. You will see obscured views of Tylers Fork Cascades, the next waterfall, but there are no clear views from here (fear not, better views are still to come). At 0.5, the trail turns hard left to cross the Tylers Fork River via footbridge, and then turns left again, still following the river, and now turned 180 degrees. A few minutes later, now 0.6 from the start, there will be a short spur on your left that leads to a perfect overlook of Tylers Forks Cascades. You can also see the top of Brownstone Falls from here, but the best views of is are further down the trail. Once you're done here, continue along the trail, and at 0.8, you will come to a long staircase winding down to the Bad River. This is also where the North Country Trail breaks off to the right, and you'll want to keep straight/left on the Doughboys Trail. Once at river level, you will cross yet another footbridge, this one quite long. Once on the other side, you will have to go up a long staircase now. Take a break at the top, then continue to the left (east), following high above the river (The CCC Trail goes right here). Soon, you will come to an opening in the trees where you get a great view of Brownstone Falls, 1.15 from the trailhead. It's a ways off, but the view is still good. From here, it's a simple 0.25 miles until you get to that bridge you saw near the start. Cross, and then turn right. The trailhead is a tenth of a mile away, completing the 1.5 mile loop.
Total Mileage: 1.5 loop
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: May 2, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 2, 2021
Rank: A+
Copper Falls
Tylers Fork Cascades
Brownstone Falls
Interstate Falls
Description: Interstate Falls gets its name from being in two states at once: Michigan and Wisconsin. The trail is on the Wisconsin side, and that is why it is listed for Wisconsin. I really like this waterfall, and the trail is easy and enjoyable.
Hiking Description: Start from the small parking area here (46.472560, -90.199916). The trail heads off to the east before wrapping around towards the river. The decent is slow, and you can't really feel it, and it's really easy going. It should start getting louder around .3 miles, and by .35, you will be at the top of the falls, with a short wooden staircase going down to the bottom.
Total Mileage: 0.7 total
Difficulty: 2/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: May 2, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 2, 2021
Rank: A
Potato River Falls (2)
Description: There are two waterfalls on the Potato River here, very close to one another. The trail to both is short, but there are a lot of stairs here, hence the higher difficulty rating.
Hiking Description: Starting from the parking area here (46.463060, -90.529552), head out on the left trail, bound for the Upper Falls. You will shortly be greeted by a long wooden staircase that ends at an overlook of the falls. It is much smaller than the Lower Falls, but still impressive. The trail dead ends here, so head back up the stairs and to the parking lot, where you'll find the right trail on the other side of the lot heading to Lower Falls. This trail has even more stairs than the Upper Falls, and it goes on for a while. Eventually, you will make it to an overlook of the falls. It is still somewhat far away, but if the weather is warm, you might be able to wade up closer to the falls, as the river is shallow in places. It was too cold for me to try this when I visited.
Total Mileage: 0.75 total
Difficulty: 6/10 (Moderate)
Date First Visited: May 2, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 2, 2021
Rank: A
Upper Potato Falls
Lower Potato Falls (zoomed in quite far)
Western Wisconsin
Cascade Falls
Description: Cascade Falls is a pretty waterfall that you can get really close to. It doesn't seem to be effected by drought or flood, and seems to always have constant flow. Sometime in 2022, the appearance of the falls was altered somewhat, and it doesn't look quite like it does in this photo.
Hiking Description: Parallel park near here (45.319641, -92.705923). Very near here is a wooden deck with stairs leading down into the glen. There are about 150 stairs, but once you get to the bottom, you're there. There is a nice footbridge, and you can get very close to the waterfall which is neat (notice I'm in the photo-on the left).
Total Mileage: 0.1 total
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: May 3, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 3, 2021
Rank: A
Willow Falls
Description: Willow Falls is a massive waterfall that has good year round flow. There's a footbridge below the falls with access to either bank, allowing for various vantage points. The trail is all downhill, so it's all uphill on the return, but it's not very far.
Hiking Description: Park here (45.017276, -92.673938). Head out on the flat (for now) and open trail headed west. It starts as concrete, but turns to dirt as you enter the woods. Very soon you will start heading downhill, and then you will keep going down and down and down until you finally reach the river. From this point, the falls are just a few hundred feet further.
Total Mileage: 1.0 total
Difficulty: 4/10 (Moderate)
Date First Visited: May 3, 2021
Date Last Visited: May 3, 2021
Rank: A+
Green Bay
Fonferek Falls
Description: Fonferek Falls is a nice looking waterfall that is right next to the parking lot. Very easy access. This picture was taken just before sunset. Be sure to visit nearby Wequiock Falls too (see the next entry).
Hiking Description: Park here (44.424200, -87.940713). Follow the wide gravel trail around the farm buildings and it will quickly lead to an overlook of the falls after 300 feet. Continue down the trail a short distance to see the crest.
Total Mileage: 0.1 total
Difficulty: 1/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: August 12, 2021
Date Last Visited: August 12, 2021
Rank: A
Wequiock Falls
Description: Wequiock Falls is a real nice waterfall that is of my favorite variety. Easy and quick access near the highway, and with a bit of extra effort, you can get right up next to the falls.
Hiking Description: Park here (44.568010, -87.879458). Head out on the flat trail at the end of the small lot. Quickly, you will come to a bridge over the creek. The falls are just to your left, but you are above the falls, and can't see much from here. Just beyond the bridge, you will come to a three-way split. Go left here. This will stay above the creek for a short distance, and then go down a short staircase to creek level. There is another bridge over the creek here, which is interesting because the trail doesn't go anywhere and dead ends at the other side of the bridge. There is a good view from here, but if you're feeling adventurous, head down the remaining few stairs to the creekside, and scramble up the side of the creek to get nearer to the waterfall. It's not too hard, but you're very close to the stream, and it would be easy to accidentally get your feet wet. Glorious views await you in the grotto!
Total Mileage: Up to 0.2 total
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy)
Date First Visited: August 12, 2021
Date Last Visited: August 13, 2021
Rank: A+
