Deckertown Falls

Deckertown Falls is located just outside of the village of Montour Falls at the south end of Seneca Lake. From the intersection of Route 14 and 224 in Montour Falls, follow Route 224 east for half of a mile, then turn right (south) onto South Lhommedieu Street. Continue for 4/10 of a mile, then turn left onto East Catlin Street and follow it to a small parking area at its end in another eighth of a mile. The trail to the falls leads to clear views from below in less than 150 feet. Note that while there are trails that continue up the hillside, there are No Trespassing signs posted that suggest continuing further upstream would involve trespassing on private property.Deckertown Falls is an often overlooked waterfall in the Watkins Glen area. The falls occur along Catlin Mill Creek as it descends through a gorge into the glacially carved valley occupied by Seneca Lake. The visible portion of the falls drop 70 feet in three distinct steps. The upper tier pours 45 feet into a small alcove flanked by a lofty cliff, and then shortly below tumbles over the middle tier in a sliding 10 foot cascade. The final drop occurs after a long pool, where the creek funnels through a narrows and drops another 15 feet through a twisting cascade, with the stream falling directly onto a protruding ledge at the bottom of the falls and creating a small but forceful roostertail effect. Access to Deckertown Falls is public thanks to the town of Montour Falls, however only the bottom of the falls can be legally accessed. The upper tier of the falls is on private property, as are at least two more falls which occur upstream from the main falls (the exact locations of which are not 100% confirmed). Please heed the Posted and No Trespassing signs you are likely to encounter when visiting the falls and keep to the public rights of way. Catlin Mill Creek drains from an area covering about 10 square miles, and seems to maintain at least a moderately healthy flow for the majority of the year. No doubt the volume of water in the stream will drop during the dry months of the summer, but during our survey in May of 2018 its flow seemed to be comparable to some of the neighboring streams in the area with larger basins, so it may well retain a decent flow throughout the year. Like all other streams in the area however, it will be best later in the year following prolonged or heavy rain fall.