A tall curtain falling off from a remote sandstone ledge, O Kun de Kun Falls is one of the most impressive plunging waterfalls in the Upper Peninsula. The North Country Trail runs along the Baltimore River here, with a small campsite below the falls and a long suspension footbridge spanning the river. The falls themselves have several streams flowing off the rocks, depending on the time of the year, and make a beautiful foreground to the lush green woods around them.
Baltimore River descends quickly here before meeting up with the Middle Branch Ontonagon River to the east. There are several smaller drops along the river, including the upper Konteko Falls and some unnamed steps below O Kun de Kun. This spot is easy to visit and worth exploring a bit, with the campground, deep woods, and smaller drops nearby side attractions around the main waterfall.
Directions
There is a trailhead and parking area on the east side of US-45, 7.8 miles north of Bruce Crossing (or just past Burma Road). Some brown signs for the North Country Trail are on either side of the trailhead. Park here and head east on the gated forest road. For a more scenic route keep an eye on the right side of the grassy forest road; the North Country Trail branches off and follows the river downstream to O Kun de Kun Falls, going past the upper drops. Otherwise, the easier way is to just stick to the forest road which leads straight to the campsite and main falls.
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Dan DeFoy
Apr 19, '21
We went here for the first time this past Saturday (April 17th, 2021). The hike was definitely worth it. I'm a photographer who just recently moved from Lansing to Ontonagon, and I was not disappointed by the falls at all. I was disappointed in how much trash we picked up along the trails, because some people have no respect for nature. I'm also wondering why there aren't any trash cans anywhere.
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Jacob P Emerick
Oct 4, '17
Oof, that's sad to hear. This is a great area to check out, but yeah, can imagine it getting pretty slimy with that clay soil.
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jlo theartist
Oct 10, '17
I was just up there sunday oct 8 and it was REALLY muddy,,,very hard to navigate and many times we had to side journey into the woods as it was impassable! I saw mounds of gravel several times along the trail and wondered WHHHHHY isnt this being laid down? The falls were filled with mud and the water was very unclear,,,but still kinda cool, we took the atv trail on the way back avoiding most of the treacherous muddy trail.
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Jacob P Emerick
May 29, '20
Thanks for the update!
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jlo theartist
Jun 19, '20
happy to hear the path is less muddy and treacherous! thx
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Bryan Mitchell
Aug 22, '20
Bummer. Another waterfall or scenic site made “easy” to get to. Not really what these areas need. If things are a bit of a challenge or longer hike it keeps some people from going and less erosion and much less traffic & garbage. Yes, everyone should be welcome but taking away the challenge is not the way IMO.
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Nichole
Oct 13, '20
I was just here 10/11/20 and it was a beautiful Fall day, 60 degree weather. With the nice weather and Covid getting more people out, there were quite a few cars in the parking lot and even a couple on the highway. I'm sure it's not like this all the time. BUT I didn't see one piece of trash anywhere and only a handful of people passed me on the trail. Everyone seemed to be in different places at once. BEAUTIFUL falls, great walking trail, so many great things to say...I highly recommend!
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