First, I’ll mention you can find out more about the waterfalls on the West Branch Sturgeon River in my previous posts, including the first posted, West Branch Sturgeon Falls #3.

I’ll just mention again, though, that the area around the falls is rather confusing. Often, the West Branch Sturgeon River is in view, and yet there’s no easy way to follow the river as it winds through the forests of the Upper Peninsula. This makes it difficult to clearly identify where the falls are found, as there are numerous different falls. This post completes the set of 4 falls I saw, and there is Hogger Falls upstream, which I was unable to find.

The second falls is not the easiest to photograph, as there are trees blocking the view. If you find the falls, you’ll be standing almost directly above them. The river takes a somewhat sharp turn at this point. Finding falls #3 and #4 become more difficult, as there is no clearly defined trail to see these falls. It’s not necessarily bushwhacking either, as long as you keep your bearings…

Directions:

1. We took MI-38 west out of Baraga and headed for a ways on M-38.
2. After traveling west on M-38, you will come to Newberry Road, which will be on your left.
3. Turn left onto Newberry Road and head 3 miles south on the dirt road.
4. After about 3 miles, you’ll come to a “road” on your left. If you go any further, you’ll end up at the West Branch Sturgeon River, where the bridge is out. If you turn around and head north, I guess it’s the first “road” on your right.
5. We had to stop at that road because it was blocked by a gate, and I’m not necessarily sure I would head down that road anyway.
6. From the gate, start hiking east down the road. Keep going until it appear that the road “ends”. It seemed to be blocked by a pile of dirt and trees, though there was a trail that wrapped around to the right.
7. Follow that trail to the right, which heads to the river. Depending on where you end up, you’ll likely see a waterfall. The first waterfall we saw was not easily visible. I then headed back west following the river very closely. The 2nd falls is not necessarily easy to photograph, but it’s probably the most noticeable of the falls.

Accessibility: 5/10 (moderate)
Height: 6′
Length of Hike: 2.3 miles round-trip

West Branch Sturgeon Falls #2 in late September 2010

Where in the World is West Branch Sturgeon River Falls #2?