Manabezho Falls: Go See It

Wider than it is tall

Manabezho Falls is the largest waterfall on the Presque Isle River, in Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. It drops about 25 feet over a crest of about 150 feet, so it is roughly six times wider than it is tall (our arithmetic).

Two more falls stand upstream on the same stretch: Manido, then Nawadaha, which drops about 15 feet. Going by their published coordinates, Nawadaha and Manabezho are about 0.6 miles apart in a straight line (our calculation).

How it looks depends on the water. The waterfall guide gowaterfalling.com says that in high water Manabezho is very wide, and later in the summer it becomes segmented. There is an overlook at the top, but the same guide says you cannot see much of the falls from it; the view is down a short walk with many stairs. Downstream of the parking area a pedestrian suspension bridge crosses to Presque Isle, past potholes the river has carved into the gorge.

The names are Ojibwe. Wikipedia says Manabezho refers to an Ojibway spirit god, and Manido comes from the Ojibwe word for spirit or ghost.

Color comes here early. The Upper Peninsula Travel and Recreation Association says fall color generally develops first in the western and interior U.P., then spreads east and toward the shorelines. This is the far west end of the park, 31.5 miles by road from the Lake of the Clouds overlook.