Yellow Dog Falls is a 20-foot segmented waterfall on the Yellow Dog River in Marquette County, Michigan, in the Yellow Dog River Community Forest.
The falls
The Yellow Dog River steps down here over a series of ledges among old-growth hemlock and granite outcrops. The chain is about 60 feet overall in seven or eight drops, none taller than 10 feet. At the top, the river splits around a jutting rock into two drops that rejoin beneath it, and a huge boulder partly hides the second drop.
Getting there
Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve owns the 688-acre Community Forest, bought in September 2016 for public access. The main trailhead, with parking and a kiosk, is on County Road 510 on the south side of the Yellow Dog River bridge. From Marquette, follow County Road 550 toward Big Bay, turn left on County Road 510 for 2.6 miles, turn left at the County Road AAA intersection and continue 3.9 miles to the bridge; parking is on the left. The first and largest fall, Hills Falls, is about 0.75 mile from the lot.
When to go
The preserve's secondary route in, the Bushy Creek Truck Trail, is usable only seasonally.
On site
A wide, flat path with log bridges leads as far as the main falls, then a narrow, overgrown route continues below; after the fifth drop it is better to cross to the north bank. A large sandy pool below the upper falls is used for wading and swimming. Currents are strong in the chutes of the lower drops, so stay out of the water there.
Nearby
An unnamed waterfall is about 0.3 mile away, Lower Yellow Dog Falls and Bushy Creek Falls are each about 0.4 mile, and Big Pup Falls is about 1.4 miles.
Distances are straight-line.