Anniversary In Paradise!
We travel across the Mackinac Bridge to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to Paradise, Michigan to see the Tahquamenon Falls, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, and more. We have a cheeseburger in Paradise at the Wheelhouse Diner, and breakfast at the famous Java Joe’s in St. Ignace.
This is a companion trip to our Valentine’s Day visit to Hell, Michigan.
Our Airbnb In St. Ignace
When we travel, we like some variety, so we usually stay in Airbnbs. In St. Ignace we selected Kim’s Place. It was a quaint little space. Not fancy at all, but it was clean and quiet. When traveling from Michigan’s Lower Peninsula to the Upper, be aware that accommodations are usually cheaper in St. Ignace than in Mackinaw City. I feel it’s worth crossing the Mackinac bridge and stay in the UP. Not only does it say money, but it helps to get an earlier start the next day.
On Route to Paradise!
We left early that morning to head north on I-75 then West and North on M123 toward paradise and Tahquamenon Falls State Park. It’s about an hour drive from St. Ignace to Paradise. IN Paradise, M123 veers west and takes you directly to Tahquamenon Falls State Park. The drive takes you along the Tahquamenon Bay and Whitefish Bay for beautiful views of Lake Superior. It was foggy during our drive, so we saw little but the road on our trip north. We turned left at Paradise to head west toward Tahquamenon Falls.
Tahquamenon Falls State Park
Tahquamenon Falls State Park encompasses nearly 50,000 acres and stretches more than 13 miles across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The majority of the park is undeveloped, and the centerpiece is the Tahquamenon River and its waterfalls, which are viewable from multiple accessible overlooks. We first visited the smaller lower falls. The Lower Falls are a series of five smaller falls cascading around an island. The falls can be viewed from the riverbank or from the island and can be reached by a rowboat rented from a park concession. FYI, drone use is prohibited on or above the waterfall viewing platforms. There are excellent and well-marked trails in the park, many of them being wooden causeways.
