Sutherland Falls

Take VT Route 3 to the town of Proctor. From the bridge on Church Street which spans Otter Creek and leads to the Vermont Marble Museum, follow Route 3 north for one sixth of a mile, then bear left onto Patch Street. In another 500 feet make a hard left and stay to the left as the road splits into a V. The road will end in less than a quarter mile at a small park adjacent to the falls, with the gated bridge leading to the power station across the river impeding access further.Sutherland Falls was, in its natural state, one of the largest waterfalls in New England. The falls occur along Otter Creek, Vermont’s longest river, in the town of Proctor, dropping a total of 98 feet in two distinct steps. The main part of the falls cascades down a rugged bedrock ramp for 88 feet in a linear run of about 350 feet, with the falls becoming steeper as it descends the ledge. An additional 10 feet of cascades occur just upstream at the foot of a small dam. Prior to the river being diverted upstream, the falls stretched to as much as 160 feet in width, and can still occasionally reach that milestone during flood conditions. The falls have been harnessed for industrial use dating back to at least the 1880s when the adjacent Vermont Marble Company was incepted. While the mill races which were used at first are long defunct, a hydroelectric station now operates at the falls and diverts the majority of Otter Creek away from the falls. A small volume of water does seem to be continuously released, but it’s a far cry from the natural state of the falls where the river would overwhelm the entire breadth of the ledge. Exactly how much of the river is diverted away from the falls is not clear, however we expect it to be enough that the falls should be expected to run nearly dry in the summer months. Recent renovations to the powerhouse below the falls resulted in the installation of a bridge over the river, as well as a formal park being developed adjacent to the falls to make access even easier. The Otter Creek basin upstream of Sutherland Falls covers an area of approximately 350 square miles. While the natural flow of the falls would be quite considerable, and would allow the falls to remain visually impressive throughout the year, because most of the stream is siphoned off into the penstocks, the falls should only be expected to flow with vigor during the spring freshet – roughly March through May. After periods of prolonged rain it may be temporarily restored to life as well, though these periods should not be expected to last more than a few days at most.