Waterfalls in Pennsylvania

Where the waterfalls are in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania's waterfalls are concentrated in the northeast, in the Pocono Mountains and the glaciated plateau around them, and in the Laurel Highlands of the southwest. Retreating glaciers left streams dropping over layered sandstone and shale, which gives many Pennsylvania falls a stair-step shape.

Ricketts Glen State Park is the headline destination, but the Delaware Water Gap and the Poconos have many more within a few hours of Philadelphia and New York.

Well-known waterfalls in Pennsylvania

Ganoga Falls

The tallest of more than twenty named falls on the Falls Trail in Ricketts Glen State Park, about 94 feet. Falls near Ganoga Falls.

Raymondskill Falls

A three-tier fall in Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, often called the tallest in Pennsylvania. Falls near Raymondskill Falls.

Dingmans Falls

A 130-foot fall at the end of a flat boardwalk in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Falls near Dingmans Falls.

Bushkill Falls

A privately owned park in the Poconos with a series of falls on trails and boardwalks, with an entry fee. Falls near Bushkill Falls.

Ohiopyle Falls

A wide fall on the Youghiogheny River in the middle of Ohiopyle State Park, next to the town. Falls near Ohiopyle Falls.

Cucumber Falls

A 30-foot fall near Ohiopyle, a short walk from the road. Falls near Cucumber Falls.

When to go

Spring snowmelt and rain, from March through May, gives the fullest falls. They slow in summer and can freeze in winter, when some trails close. See the best time to see waterfalls for how flow changes by region.

Pennsylvania by the numbers

The map shows 175 named falls in Pennsylvania. 91 of them are in the USGS Geographic Names Information System, the federal register of official place names, and 84 more are named falls mapped only in OpenStreetMap. 50 have a height recorded by OpenStreetMap mappers, which is what the height filter above uses. LuzerneCounty has the most, with 25.

Tallest recorded waterfalls in Pennsylvania

Heights as recorded in OpenStreetMap, converted to feet. Guidebooks may list different figures, usually because they count every tier of a fall or only the biggest drop. Why heights differ.

Counties with the most waterfalls

From the USGS record, which gives each fall's county.

Every named waterfall in Pennsylvania

Alphabetical within each county. Tap a name to centre the map above on it.

Beaver County (1)

Homewood Falls (30 ft)

Bucks County (1)

Scudders Falls

Cambria County (2)

White Tail Falls, Winding Staircase Falls

Carbon County (1)

Hawk Falls

Crawford County (1)

Rock Creek Falls

Dauphin County (1)

Conewago Falls

Erie County (1)

Howard Falls (45 ft)

Fayette County (5)

Creek Falls, Cucumber Falls (30 ft), Jonathan Run Falls, Ohiopyle Falls (20 ft), Sugar Run Falls

Lackawanna County (1)

Nay Aug Falls (20 ft)

Lancaster County (1)

Conewago Falls

Lawrence County (3)

Grant City Falls, Quakertown Falls (49 ft), Spillway Falls

Luzerne County (25)

Adams Falls, B Reynolds Falls (40 ft), Cayuga Falls (11 ft), Conestoga Falls (17 ft), Delaware Falls (31 ft), Erie Falls (47 ft), F L Ricketts Falls (38 ft), Ganoga Falls (94 ft), Great Falls of the Lehigh, Harrison Wright Falls (27 ft), Huron Falls (41 ft), Kitchen Creek Falls, Mohawk Falls (37 ft), Mohican Falls (39 ft), Murray Reynolds Falls (16 ft), Oneida Falls (13 ft), Onondaga Falls (15 ft), Ozone Falls (60 ft), R B Ricketts Falls (36 ft), Seneca Falls (12 ft), Shawnee Falls, Sheldon Reynolds Falls (36 ft), Tuscarora Falls (41 ft), Whirlpool Canyon Falls, Wyandot Falls (15 ft)

Mercer County (1)

Springfield Falls (20 ft)

Monroe County (13)

Buck Hill Falls, Buttermilk Falls, Clarke Falls, High Falls, Indian Ladder Falls, Leavitt Falls, Lee Falls, Marshall Falls, Marshalls Falls, Paradise Falls, Spruce Cabin Falls, Tobyhanna Falls, Twin Falls

Philadelphia County (2)

Falls of Schuylkill, The Grotto

Pike County (14)

Bushkill Falls, Deer Leap Falls, Dingmans Falls, Factory Falls, Fulmer Falls, High Falls, Little Falls, Pinchot Falls, Raymondskill Falls, Ridgeway Falls, Shohola Falls, Silverthread Falls, Snow Hill Falls, Winona Falls

Schuylkill County (1)

Tomhicken Falls

Somerset County (2)

Cole Run Falls, Laurel Falls

Sullivan County (9)

Angel Falls (70 ft), Buttermilk Falls, Cold Run Road Falls, Dry Run Falls, Dutchman Falls (27 ft), Lewis Falls, Lincoln Falls, Twin Falls, Wenonan Falls

Tioga County (1)

Fallbrook Falls

Wayne County (3)

Bucks Falls, Darbytown Falls, Wangum Falls

Westmoreland County (1)

Adams Falls

Wyoming County (1)

Buttermilk Falls

County not recorded (84)

3 Runs Falls (33 ft), Acrigg's Falls, Alpha Falls, Alpine Falls, Andrea Falls, Armstrong-Rode Falls (10 ft), Barclay Falls, Big Falls, Big Run Falls, Bond Hill Falls, Bradford Falls, Breakneck Falls (16 ft), Bridal Veil Falls, Buttermilk Falls, Buttermilk Falls (60 ft), Buttermilk Falls, Carley Brook Falls, Cave Falls, Choke Creek Falls, Cold Run Waterfall, Cottonwood Falls, East Branch Falls (25 ft), Emerald Falls (15 ft), First Falls (33 ft), Frankfort Mineral Springs, Freedom Falls, Gipson Falls (20 ft), Gregg Falls, Hackers Falls, Hector Falls, Hells Hollow Falls, High Falls, High Rock Falls (26 ft), Hinckston Falls, Jacoby Falls, Jarrett Falls (7 ft), Kildoo Falls, Laquin Falls, Laurel Glen Falls, Lee's Falls (13 ft), Little Falls, Lower Bridesmaid's Falls, Lower Falls, Lower Falls, Lower Gorge Falls, Lower Indian Ladder Falls, Lower Middle Branch Falls (20 ft), Lukes Falls, Marshalls Creek Falls, Mill Creek Falls (13 ft), Naval Run Falls, Old Bark Falls, Old Mill Falls, Onoko Falls, Pennell Falls, Pigeon Run Falls, Potters Falls, Princess Run Waterfall, Purgatory Falls (30 ft), Rattlesnake Falls, Raymondskil Falls, Resica Falls, Rosecran Falls, Rosecrans Falls, Rusty Run Falls, Salvatore Falls, Second Falls (8 ft), Snake Run (10 ft), Sullivan Falls, Swatara Falls, Table Falls, Tamarack Falls (23 ft), Terrace Falls, Third Falls (21 ft), Thompson Run Falls, Triple Falls (25 ft), Tumbling Waters, Turtle Falls (20 ft), Un-named Falls, Upper Bridesmaid's Falls, Upper Canyon Falls, Upper Falls, Upper Middle Branch Falls (12 ft), Wild Creek Falls

Before you go

The map shows where falls are, not whether they are open or safe to reach. Check the land manager, usually a state park or national forest, for closures, fees and permits, and stay on the trail near the water. Our waterfall safety guide covers the hazards, and waterfall hikes near me explains how to pick a trail.

Waterfalls near cities in Pennsylvania

Every named fall within driving range of the city, nearest first: waterfalls near Pittsburgh, waterfalls near Philadelphia.

Waterfalls in nearby states: Maryland, New York, New Jersey, West Virginia. Or see waterfalls in every state.