Glendale Falls is a long run of cascading whitewater on Glendale Brook, dropping down a steep, ledgy course through the hilltown forest of Middlefield. The Trustees of Reservations, who own and protect the falls, describe the cascade as one of the longest and most powerful waterfall runs in the state: a spread of moving water rather than a single plunge.
The reservation
The protected area is small, about 60 acres along the brook, but the falls themselves stretch a long way down the slope, with water sliding and tumbling over a series of stepped ledges. The surrounding forest is mostly mixed hardwoods and hemlock, and the property is undeveloped: no visitor center, no restrooms, no staffed gate.
The trail
A short, unmarked path leads from the roadside parking on Clark Wright Road down to a viewing spot beside the brook, roughly a quarter mile each way, with a steady descent on the way in and the corresponding climb on the way out. The footing is rocky and can be slick when wet; closer to the water it gets steeper and more uneven.
What to know
- Best in spring. Glendale Brook is a small stream, and the falls are most dramatic in spring snowmelt and after heavy rain. By late summer the flow can drop sharply.
- Stay off the rocks. The wet ledges along the brook are very slippery, and people have been seriously injured here. View from established spots; do not climb on the falls.
- Hours and parking. Open daily sunrise to sunset; the small parking area fits about seven cars and is not plowed in winter.
- Leashed dogs welcome.
- No mountain biking.
- Hunting is permitted in season under state and town laws, but not on Sundays; wear blaze orange in hunting season.
- No facilities. Bring water and pack out everything you carry in.
- Getting there. Clark Wright Road is a narrow rural road; drive slowly and pull well off the pavement at the small reservation parking area.