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River

Whitefish River

Class

Cascade

Size

Small

Visitability

Good

Accessibility

Free

Activity

Moderate

Walk Time

2min

Trail

Moderate

Gorge Access

Difficult

Other Trails

some

County

Sudbury

From Sudbury, drive west on Hwy 17 to Hwy 6. Turn south (left) on Hwy 6 and drive for about 25 km to Whitefish Falls. Drive over the bridge over the river, and then turn right at the next road, located about 1 km down the road. Follow this road back around for about 1 km to a parking area on the right. This parking area is found after the view across the bay to the falls. A path from the parking lot leads to the rocks beside the Falls.

Settlement

Whitefish Falls

NTS Map

41I/4

Easting

443319

Northing

5107292

UTM Zone

Whitefish Falls isn't big, and the falls themselves aren't even that spectacular. But this is one of those waterfalls that is elevated by thes stunning scenery in which it is located. The drive heading south to the falls is remarkable for its high barren hills of white quartizite. The route winds its way through the eastern edge of the La Cloche Mountains. These aren't ~really~ mountains, but the rugged scenery here can match just about anything else in Ontario. This is a geologist's paradise, containing some of the province's oldest rocks. Several Universities (incl UofT, Western and Waterloo) in Ontario have held annual geology field camps in this area for years.

The falls are actually a long, low, narrow cascade falling perhaps 5 or 6 meters on a stretch of the river draining Frood Lake to the Bay of Islands of the North Channel of Lake Huron. The waterfall is partially hidden under the Hwy 6 bridge, as well as the bridge for the recently abandoned CP rail line. The river crashes down a narrow bedrock notch, foaming and boiling the rest of its way to a small bay below.

This is not a photogenic waterfall, but it provides good visiting. You can scramble over the exposed bedrock on either side of the waterfall, and on either side of the river downstream from the falls. The barren nature of the landscape shows off the white colour of the quartzite (shown to the left of the waterfall in the above photograph). After exploring the near side of the falls, cross the river via the Highway bridge and explore the rocky land on the river's left bank (looking downstream). The concrete shell of a long-abandoned industrial building can be found a few tens of meters downstream from the falls.

PLEASE Use caution when walking around the falls. While there are no steep cliffs, the rocks dip right into the river and can be very slippery as you approach river.