Fonferek Falls is a 20-foot block waterfall on Bower Creek in Brown County, Wisconsin, where the creek pours over a dolomite ledge of the Niagara Escarpment inside Fonferek's Glen, a county park about 1.6 miles from Bellevue and 7.7 miles from Green Bay.
The falls
Bower Creek drops in a single vertical curtain over a ledge framed by dolomite cliffs. Lidar measurements put the drop at about 20 feet; earlier surveys listed 30 feet, and county records also give 30. The 75-acre conservancy around the falls also holds a stone arch, a natural bridge in the escarpment rock, with tabulate coral fossils in the dolostone.
Getting there
Fonferek's Glen is run by Brown County Parks. It is open from 8 a.m. to dusk with free admission, and an automatic gate closes the entrance at sunset. A small parking area sits between the park's house and barn; parking on surrounding streets is prohibited. A short paved walk leads from the lot to the waterfall overlook, which was built in 2019.
When to go
The waterfall flows during spring and is generally frozen in winter.
On site
The designated overlook is the one developed viewing point; the park has no marked trails beyond it. The county warns of steep cliffs, falling rock and rugged terrain outside the designated area. In August 2013 a woman died after falling from a cliff in the park while trying to help a man who had already fallen; keep to the designated overlook. The park has a picnic area. Dogs are allowed on a leash no longer than 8 feet, and smoking is prohibited.
History and name
The land belonged to the Fonferek family until Brown County acquired it; the park opened to the public in 1991.
Nearby
Kittell Falls is about 1.5 miles away, Wequiock Falls about 10.4 miles and Devils River Falls about 11.7 miles.
Distances are straight-line.