Lower Carpenter Falls

Skaneateles Lake / Cayuga County, New York, USA
Rating: 1.5     Difficulty: 2 Lower Carpenter Falls is actually an unofficial moniker that I'm giving for this pretty cascade. Technically there are a handful of inaccessible waterfalls downstream of Carpenter Falls that you can hear but can't see. This just happened to be one that I was able to reach and see.

I wasn't sure if I was supposed to access this falls or not because after hiking on a longer 0.5-mile trail (one-way) following the rim of the forested gorge downstream from the car park, I was confronted with warning signs telling me not to go any further. The problem with that was if this was the only course to take, then the waterfalls within the gorge along this trail can only be heard and not seen!

Anyways, it looked like the trail used to continue to the bottom, but it was very steep and apparently landslides over the years made this path relatively unsafe. That said, I've seen more doable scrambles that were worse than this that have been sanctioned. Go figure. Needless to say, I did the steep scramble to the bottom then worked my way upstream to the cascade you see here.

Update (1/11/2009): Dean Goss at the World Waterfall Database and the Northeast Waterfalls just told me that this waterfall is more locally known as Angel Falls. He then went on to say that it's "a degree or two short of the one in Venezuela."

Directions: This waterfall shares the same trailhead as that of Upper Carpenter Falls. So see that page for driving directions.


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PHOTO JOURNAL

Approaching the falls

More direct look at the falls


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VIDEOS OF THE FALLS

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MAP OF THE FALLS

View Larger Map




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TRIP REPORTS

For more information about our experiences with this waterfall, check out the following travel stories.

• June 15, 2007

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GUIDEBOOKS / OTHER RESOURCES

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NEARBY WATERFALLS

• Upper Carpenter Falls
• Pratt's Falls
• Chittenango Falls

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