South Bristol Cliffs Falls

Take Route 116 south out of Bristol and follow it for about 3.5 miles. Shortly after you cross a one lane bridge over the New Haven River, take a left on Carlstrom Road. The road lines up directly with the falls on the tall cliff in front of you.The Hogback is a narrow and steep rounded ridge that goes for several miles on a north south axis. Along the way, there are a few small drainages that capture a limited amount of water, perhaps the two most noteworthy of which create lofty but low volume waterfalls just south of Bristol. The southern of the two streams originates in wetlands and marshes, and funnels to the cliffs in such a way that the water splits into two channels, one side forming a veiling horsetail type fall down an exposed cliff face approximately 230 feet in height, the other channeling into a narrow gully and stairstepping down a narrow horsetail type fall for about 160 feet. Below the falls the stream cascades through the massive talus pile known locally as Hell's Half-acre.According to legend, an old Spaniard told a story of a massive silver vein that was melted and poured into sand molds creating a cache of silver ingots. The old man was in his early adulthood when the silver was hidden away in a shaft at the base of the cliffs, or so the story goes. The area came to be known as Hell's Half-acre. Silver has never been found in Vermont, but treasure hunters are noted for their eternal optimism. Here is more on the interesting story of a fabled lost treasure: Treasure in Bristol Vermont