Rainbow Falls

We visited on the day before Christmas, it was such a nice walk, the view is astonishing, highly recommend if you are in the area. We stayed in Burdett.

This nearly 150-foot high waterfall is a sight that should not be missed. Located about a mile west of the park's main entrance, just follow the popular 1.5-mile Gorge Trail through the 400-foot-deep gorge until you reach the famous Rainbow Falls and adjacent Triple Cascade. This Rainbow Falls is located in Minnewaska State Park Preserve in Ulster County, New York (not to be confused with the Rainbow Falls and Indian Head trail in the Adirondack Mountain Reserve).The park includes dense hardwood forests, beautiful views, waterfalls, three lakes and numerous hiking trails. The park is managed by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Park in the lower parking area and take the Mossy Glen Trail (yellow), which is almost an immediate left off the lower Carriage Road( corner of parking lot ). The trail hugs the Peters Kill for almost 2 miles. Follow the trail left and up to the upper carriage road and make a right. Follow the Carriage Road for about a mile and look for the orange blaze on the right for Rainbow Falls Trail heading downhill. Follow the trail a short distance for about a half mile to the base of the falls. Continue along the base of the falls following the orange markers UP the short rock scramble. Once at the top enjoy the view of the Catskills in the distance,Rainbow Falls is simply magical. Plummeting from the airy heights of the Great Range in the Adirondack Mountains, Cascade Brook has etched away at the heart of the High Peaks to form a miniature box canyon so narrow that it rarely sees complete sun. What results is a stunningly beautiful micro-ecosystem and one of nature’s most impressive and refreshing natural showers.

Beautiful nature walk. Wear appropriate clothing and shoes. There are some parts where the path is muddy or wet from the adjacent waterfalls. So don't be afraid to get your shoes wet and dirty. There are alot of inclines and declines to traverse. Some elderly folks may have an issue with the ups and downs. But loved the scenery. You will too.

This was a fantastic visit to some of my favorite geographic features on earth. It’s a serious walk with lots of stairs but absolutely worth the effort if you’re capable.

Pro tip- park at the north entrance, hike down along the falls, and hike back on the rim trail. This way, the most challenging stairs are done at the beginning.

Worth it worth it worth it! We visited Rainbow Falls from out of town and are so glad it was recommended to us. We followed the Gorge Trail to see the waterfalls, and we'd consider it between easy and moderate. If you are not an avid hiker (I am not), it is definitely doable. I did it in flip flops although I wouldn't recommend it.

By chance, we started in the South Entrance and inadvertently avoided the "stairs/steps" everyone talks about. Ok with us - the Gorge Trail is so beautiful, scenic and unique, and what we wanted to see. There were plenty of opportunities for great pics. We did the entire loop, minus the stairs from the main entrance, in about two hours. If you're chasing waterfalls, please stick to the Gorge Trail 😂

Absolutely beautiful but I would recommend starting at the top and not the in town park entrance or you will be walking up over 800 steps verses walking down.

There are 2 options for hiking the Watkins Glen Gorge Trail: from the main entrance or from the upper entrance.
We parked our car at the upper entrance and started hiking down the trail. Once you get to the bottom of the gorge, you can take the seasonal shuttle ($6 per person) back to where you parked your car.
Hiking the Gorge & Indian Trail is free. However, you will need to pay $10 parking fee at the state park entrance.

One of the most outstanding landmarks of this already breathtaking trail and Gorge, you’d be hard pressed to not stop and soak in the gorgeous and feel good majesty of this location.
There’s a certain uplifting element with the enveloping panoramic landscape that blends a rugged beauty and charming grace. This is a quintessential stop gap point of interest for tourists/locals trekking along the trail, so please do visit! It’s utterly breathtaking.
Be mindful that it can be sometimes quite slippery (the right footwear makes a world of difference!) and you may get wet from nature’s controlled fury, but it’s altogether a beautiful display.
Highly recommended!
It’s perfect for picture taking,

I took my two teenage kids to Ithaca to visit family in late December 2022. My daughter wanted to see waterfalls and this was one place that was recommended to us. It was absolutely beautiful and since it was warmer than usual, very foggy and mysterious. We hit a week of warmer than usual weather and unfortunately my kids did not get the chance to see it snow. But rainbow Falls is a must see location if you want to have a relaxing beautiful day.

Gorgeous View !!!! This is the best hike trail park I visited so far. Nature amazed me with so beautiful view, complete forest or in the woods feel. The mountains with beautiful creative shapes into amazing waterfalls. All green all side. We loved this place.
NOTE - If you want to cover the complete trail with no or less crowd, try to hit the trail by 7-8AM morning. We also started our day at 7:30AM, there was no car parked at that time, we completed by 10-10:30, it was fully crowded by then.

The place is spectacular.
There are no words to describe the waterfalls.

Beautiful!!! Make sure you do the whole Gorge as there are falls on both sides but if you only have time for a short hike do the lower part. Highly recommended!!!

Beautiful walk through nature and down the gorge by the water. Rainbow falls area is very cool with a walk under an overhang that has water running over it, like a baby waterfall

We didn't see any rainbows at the falls the day we were here. But it was great walking under the falls. Other than people taking wayyyyy to many selfies it was amazing.

Gorge trail is Gorgeous! A photographers paradise. On a damp drizzling day, it was still splendid! North rim trail , LOTS of steps.

Enjoy the walk and the view ! Take your time so you can enjoy all the wonderful gorges and sights. The park has many plaques you can read for information . Can be muddy so wear shoes that have traction and you don’t mind getting dirty.

Very beautiful spot in the gorge trail. The water falls falling on us on the trail side we are walking through between the cliff and waterfall. The view of the cliff are really beautiful.

This was the most breathtaking place I have ever been. It reminded me of a fantasy realm out of book. Kind of crowded at several spots but still worth it.

Nice trail along the river side. Great falls view points. Easy to track. Great place to spend time and click pictures.

Beautiful waterfall, with that bridge behind it creates the most magical scenery ❤