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| Ash River Falls from the air. |
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| Satellite map of Ash River Falls Trail. |
The Ash River Falls Waterfall Trail runs 1.7-miles round trip. Though not an official trail in the Kabetogama State Forest, the falls is so spectacular a sight that people have cut a path to it.
To reach the trail, from U.S. Hwy. 53 about midway between Ash Lake and Ray, turn east onto County Road 129/Ash River Trail. Then go right/south onto Ash River Recreational Trail. The paved highway naturally becomes Bright Star Road. As taking the last curve before the NoVA Far Detector Building (which is off limits to the public), park in the pullout on the road's left/northwest side. Two trails start at the pullout. Take the one on the right and go northeast.
The sandy jeep trail heads through a woods as it wraps around the detector building. A particle physics experiment designed to detect neutrinos, elementary particles are beamed through 503 miles of Earth from Fermilab (the near detector) to this one in northern Minnesota (the far detector).
After about 0.42 miles, on the detector building's east side, the trail narrows and heads through a pine barrens.
Where the woodline picks up abut 0.38 miles later, the trail descends through evergreens to the Ash River shoreline. Once on the rocky beach, turn right/south; the base of the waterfall is in about 300 feet.
The Ash River tumbles about 34.5 feet over four tiers of gray rock. You’ll likely spot a canoeist or two on the river below the falls; this is a popular canoeing destination from a series of resorts along County Road 129, which begin about a mile upstream. Unfortunately, no hiking trail leads from the resorts to the falls.
Below the waterfall, the river widens and flows northeast to Sullivan Bay, which empties into Kabetogama Lake near the Ash River Visitor Center in Voyageurs National Park.
Learn more about nearby day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at Voyageurs National Park guidebook.
