By Sterling McGinn
The Upper Tahquamenon Falls is breathtaking any time of year, but the view of the frozen water and ice formations make a winter visit extra special.
In the 1930s, getting to the falls in summer and autumn was only possible via the Tahquamenon River Boat Trip, and only the hardiest snowshoers could get there in the winter.
A few outdoorsmen and newspaper writers trekked 50 miles in four days through the wilderness from Soo Junction. The first successful trip was in February 1929. An expedition for photos of the frozen falls in 1928 was hampered by storms and deep snow, causing the team to turn back just nine miles from their destination.
The organizer of the 1929 trek was a Grand Rapids Press Out-of-Doors editor named Ben East. East made the snowshoe trip carrying two cameras – weighing 35 pounds and 18 pounds apiece – to capture the winter views of the Tahquamenon. He was perhaps one of the Tahquamenon’s biggest promoters and his writing and photos led to an influx of those wishing to see the mighty falls.
When the Newberry Lumber and Chemical Company built their logging camp #6 and expanded their railroad to a point approximately four miles west of the Upper Falls in the 1930s, an easier and less distanced trip could be made to the falls in winter.
In the mid-1930s, the Newberry Lumber and Chemical Company, a producer of charcoal pig iron, lumber, and chemicals, began offering snowshoe excursion trips through their Charcoal Grade logging railroad.
The first winter trips on the train were taken only by company employees and select guests, however, a front-office worker thought a weekly excursion for the public would be appealing. Week-day trips were not possible; they would interrupt the logging schedule. Public outings were available on Sundays on a limited basis.
Each week’s trip reservations filled fast and caught the attention of sightseers from around the U.P. and parts of the Lower Peninsula.
“We are being besieged with requests for reservations for this trip…we have over 100 on our list now and we absolutely must stop at that number,” said company manager Phillip Hamilton in a memo dated February 12, 1936.
Passengers boarded the “Big Falls Limited,” which departed Newberry at 7:30 a.m. with Donald “Darb” Tait conducting the old locomotive.
The snow train arrived at Camp #6 around 9 a.m., where passengers were fed a real lumberjack breakfast of sourdough pancakes, fried bacon, fried eggs, buns, rolls, cookies, cake, and hot coffee.
They boarded the train again and went deeper into the woods, stopping four miles from the Upper Falls. The snowshoers unloaded, and started their adventure, with company surveyor Harold Lawrence breaking the trail.
Beatrice Schweitzer, a Sault resident who worked at the Edison Sault Electric Co., took the excursion in the winter of 1936. She wrote an account of the trip.
“The party strings out for a mile or so—those who are accomplished and eager are right on the snowshoe tails of Mr. Lawrence,” she wrote. “Others who are not accustomed to their strange foot gear have difficulty with straps and harness and drop out here and there for repairs or adjustments.”
The hike to the falls took a few hours and not everyone finished it. Some snowshoers stopped due to blisters and other pains. Some decided not to leave camp.
Those who made it to the falls spent about 30 minutes gazing at the frozen wonderland, snapping photos, and exploring the ice cavern under the falls. Then they lumbered back to the train.
On the way home, the train stopped again at Camp #6 for dinner at 3:45 p.m. The camp cook served roast beef or pork, brown gravy, vegetables, and dessert.
The happy and full bunch of snowshoers boarded the train back to Newberry where they arrived approximately 5:30 p.m., exhausted but pleased.
Snowshoe train excursions were offered by the Newberry Lumber and Chemical Company until the early 1940s. According to notes by outdoor writer George Rintamaki, the last trip to the Upper Falls and Camp #6 occurred in the winter of 1941.
The railroad was removed later that year, and the Newberry Lumber and Chemical Company ceased operations in 1945.
