Hiking to Bridal Falls

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) is an incredible experience in itself. The BWCAW is home to many unique sights including the highest point in Minnesota at Eagle Mountain, ancient pictographs on multiple rock walls, less common wildlife like moose and wolves, and the many lakes that offer incredible fishing. Bridal Falls is one of the many waterfalls in the BWCAW, but the Bridal Falls stands out from all the others.

Choosing your path

Bridal Falls takes some planning to get to but you have a couple choices to choose from. The first option is whether you would like to do a canoe or kayak trip and stop at the waterfalls during your trip. Another option is to go for a 7-mile round trip hike. We chose to do the hike.

Getting there

First of all take the Gunflint Trail (County Road 12) from Grand Marais to County Road 51. You can park at the small parking area that is located just below the hill. Then hike to the top of the hill where you will see a sign marking the “Border Route Trail”. This part of the trail is also called the “Crab Lake Trail”.

The Border Route Trail

The first 1.6 miles on the Crab Lake Trail to the creek is fairly easy with wide trails. When you pass the BWCAW sign and cross the creek, the trail splits. Take the trail to the left just after the creek. This is a short .7 mile hike from the creek to the Border Route Trail. The trail is rocky and muddy in areas. When you reach the “Border Route Trail” sign, the trail splits again. Take the trail to the left. This part of the trail can be steep in areas with scenic overlooks of Gunflint Lake and Canada. Continue on the trail and you will come to a wooden bridge. From there, you will hike about 118 feet beyond the bridge to where the trail splits again. Finally take the trail to the right and follow a steep trail down to the base of the waterfalls. At the base of the hill the trail will split again. Take the trail to the right to see the beautiful Bridal Falls.

Enjoying the Falls

As you near Bridal Falls, the whole atmosphere changes and it almost seems like you’re not in Minnesota anymore. A light mist hangs in the air all around you and keeps the air cooler. The high rock walls are dark with gentle water tumbling over the edges. This waterfall really does have the look of a bridal veil flowing over the rocks. We have never spent as much time at any one particular waterfall as we did at this one.
From the sights and sounds as well as everything else, Bridal Falls truly is a very enchanting and peaceful place to relax and explore. This is one of our favorite places and is definitely worth the effort to get there.