Triple Cascade

Watkins Glen State Park is located right in downtown Watkins Glen, at the south end of Seneca Lake. There are multiple parking areas available, one on either side of State Route 14 adjacent to the park visitor center, as well as larger lots available a short distance up Route 329 from downtown, and off of Route 409 near the upper end of the gorge (consult a park map for specific directions). From the lower parking lot, simply hike the easy Gorge Trail upstream. Triple Cascade is encountered approximately two-thirds of a mile from the visitor center.Watkins Glen is rightly one of the most popular natural attractions in western New York State. Over the course of about a mile Glen Creek tumbles through a spectacular narrow canyon with sheer cliffs as much as 200 feet high, and tumbles over numerous waterfalls, most of which can be easily enjoyed from a creatively constructed path which traverses terraces and walkways perched on the side of the gorge. There are said to be 19 waterfalls located within Watkins Glen, though distinctly naming some of these features is stretching the definition of waterfall to quite liberal extremes.
Though Triple Cascade is one of the smaller waterfalls within Watkins Glen, its triple stair-step form is among the most eye-catching and certainly among the most photographed locations along the Gorge Trail. Here, Glen Creek tumbles a total of twelve feet in three steps, with drops of about 12, 6, and 4 feet respectively – though during periods of higher flow the falls may vary in height due to the water backing up in parts of the gorge.
The collective view of Rainbow Falls and Triple Cascade framed with its stone arch footbridge just above is the signature vista of Watkins Glen. Just downstream from Triple Cascade is a section of the canyon known as Glen of Pools, a very pretty chain of pothole pools separated from one another by small tumbles ranging from 6 inches to about 3 feet in height.
Glen Creek has a moderately large drainage basin, but like many streams in western New York the low elevation and broad farm lands on the plateaus above don’t promote the best ground water retention and as a result the volume of water present in the creek can vary dramatically between seasons. Upstream from the heart of the glen, the creek’s basin covers approximately 22 square miles. There are two small lakes along Glen Creek upstream of the gorge proper, but neither are large enough to contribute meaningful volume to the stream during the dry season. Though the creek flows all year long, unless it has been replenished by passing storms, expect to see a fairly small stream for much of the summer and early autumn months.Historically this waterfall is properly known as Triple Cascade, but sometimes the falls have been referred to as The Cascade at Rainbow Falls as well.