Trail heads to peaceful waterfall, glade

Lost Creek Falls. Photo courtesy of cornucopiawisconsin.org.

Lost Creek Falls Trail sits on peninsula

Day hikers can enjoy a little-known, secluded waterfall on a Bayfield Peninsula trail in northern Wisconsin.

The Lost Creek Falls Trail runs 3-miles round trip. As part of the route is a snowmobile trail that’s not maintained during summer, the best time to hike this route is a pleasant spring day before the weeds sprout and take over the walking path in June. Spring actually is the best time to see the falls, as that the marks the heaviest water flows.

Creek crossings
To reach the trailhead, from Cornucopia, drive south on Wis. Hwy. 13. Go left/south onto the unpaved Klemik Road. In 1.2 miles is an ATV/snowmobile crossing with a yellow gate on the left/east side of road. This is the trailhead. Park on the road shoulder and head east onto the trail, walking around the gate.

For the first quarter mile, aspens – some reaching heights of 30 feet – line the trail. At 0.3 miles is a steel-framed bridge over Lost Creek #2. Ignore the spur road and cross the bridge. On the other side is another spur road; ignore it as well.

The trail becomes more worn from here on, and the trees grow taller with a greater mix of aspen, hardwoods and pines. Another surprise are the raspberry, thimbleberry and blackberry bushes lining the trail; because of this, black bears frequent the area, so know how to defend yourself against one in the extremely rare chance that an encounter occurs.

The trail next descends steeply to a creek. At about 1.2 miles, you’ll reach the wood-railing bridge over Lost Creek #1.

Fifteen-foot falls
From there, the trail rises and turns southeast. In about 600 yards, you should hear the waterfalls. Be sure to follow the narrow footpath that parallels the stream and heads south.

The last 200 yards of the trail is a twisting rocky trail through the woods that covers a mere hundred yards as the crow flies. Finally, at 1.5 miles, you’ll reach Lost Creek Falls.

One of Bayfield County’s few waterfalls, Lost Creek No. 1 tumbles 15 feet over a sandstone ledge into an open, mossy glen. The falls consists of an eight-foot drop with smaller, staircase cascades below, and is a great spot to picnic.

Once you’ve taken in the falls and rested, return the way you came.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Cornucopia-Red Cliff WI day hiking trails include famous Lake Superior sea caves

Mawikwe Bay Sea Caves. Photo courtesy of Apostle Islands National
Lakeshore NPS.

Imagine a place where you can hike sandy beaches and enjoy fantastic vistas of the world’s largest freshwater lake, a place of towering pines that bald eagles fly over and black bears scamper beneath, a place where you can explore sea caves or hike across billion-year-old red rock. The place is real – it’s called Bayfield County, Wisconsin.

If Wisconsin were a mitten, Bayfield County would be the peak of the four fingers. With much of it a peninsula, it boasts more shoreline on Lake Superior than any other Wisconsin county. It also offers dozens of miles of trails for those who love hiking.

Though the county villages of Cornucopia and Red Cliff are at the far northern end of Bayfield Peninsula, there are a few good day hiking trails. The major trail is in the mainland unit of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, where the Mawikwe Bay Sea Caves can be accessed.

Popular day hiking trails in the Cornucopia-Red Cliff area include:
g Mawikwe Bay sea caves
g Roundup of trails near Red Cliff

Read more about day hiking Bayfield County in my Hittin’ the Trail: Day Bayfield County, Wisconsin guidebook.

Great day hiking trails surround Wisconsin’s Cornucopia-Red Cliff area

View of the Mawikwe Sea Caves from the Mainland Trail.
Photo courtesy of Apostle Islands NPS.

Famed sea caves visible from
Apostle Islands mainland unit

Bayfield County ranks among Wisconsin’s most popular tourism destinations, attracting skiers, boaters, campers and sightseers. It also offers dozens of miles of trails for those who love hiking.

Consisting mainly of forestland and lakeshore, each Bayfield County village feels like a quaint throwback to years past. Only one of them boasts a population close to 3000 people.

Ten villages can be found there, with the majority of them hugging the lakeshore or a county line. Among them is Cornucopia and Red Cliff.

On Bayfield Peninsula’s western shoreline is the unincorporated community of Cornucopia. It is near a mainland portion of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, which features the Mawikwe Bay Sea Caves.

Circling around the top of the Bayfield Peninsula is the mainland portion of the national lakeshore. On the peninsula’s western shore is the village of Red Cliff, which serves as the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa’s administrative center. Fewer than a thousand people live on the Red Cliff reservation.

Popular day hiking trails in the Cornucopia-Red Cliff area include:
>>Mawikwe Bay sea caves
>>Roundup of trails near Red Cliff

Read more about day hiking Bayfield County in my Hittin’ the Trail: Day Bayfield County, Wisconsin guidebook.

Great day hiking trails surround northern Wisconsin’s Iron River area

A common site in Brule River State Forest near Iron River, Wis.
Photo courtesy of Wisconsin DNR.

Bayfield County ranks among Wisconsin’s most popular tourism destinations, attracting skiers, boaters, campers and sightseers. It also offers dozens of miles of trails for those who love hiking.

Consisting mainly of forestland and lakeshore, each Bayfield County village feels like a quaint throwback to years past. Only one of them boasts a population close to 3000 people.

Ten villages can be found there, with the majority of them hugging the lakeshore or a county line. Among them is Iron River and the nearby unincoporated communities of Port Wing and Herbster.

In the county’s southwestern corner is tucked Iron River, The county’s second largest city with more than a thousand residents, its main attractions are the Brule River State Forest in neighboring Douglas County and the Chequamegon National Forest to the east. The annual Blueberry Festival and Bayfield County Fair are held here each summer.

North of Iron River on the Bayfield Peninsula along the Lake Superior shoreline is Port Wing and to the northeast Herbster. Both villages are unincorporated. Each relies on tourism and to a lesser extent fishing, lumbering and agriculture as their mainstays.

Popular day hiking trails in the Iron River-Port Wing-Herbster area include:
g Iron River National Fish Hatchery
g Roundup of Iron River area trails

Read more about day hiking Bayfield County in my Hittin’ the Trail: Day Bayfield County, Wisconsin guidebook.