Best Waterfall Hikes in Connecticut
These are Connecticut waterfall hikes where the trail is part of the experience—not just a roadside pull-off.
Compare mileage and access styles here, then open each guide for elevation change, slick-rock notes, and seasonal closures. For easier viewpoints, see 10 Easiest Waterfalls in Connecticut.
Rank 1: Enders Falls Trail — Granby
Five-tier cascade in Enders State Forest, Granby. Popular (and unofficial) swim pools — cliff jumping is extremely dangerous.
- Walk
- 15-25 min
Rank 2: Kent Falls Trail — Kent
Viewing only, not a swim stop
Signature Housatonic Valley cascade in Kent Falls State Park. Paved ADA path to the base, stairway trail up the tiers.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 20-30 min
Rank 3: Roaring Brook Falls Trail — Cheshire
Viewing only, not a swim stop
CT's tallest single-drop waterfall: an 80-ft traprock horsetail at the end of Roaring Brook Road in Cheshire.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 25 min
Rank 4: Chapman Falls Trail — East Haddam
Viewing only, not a swim stop
60 ft stair-step cascade on Eight Mile River in Devil's Hopyard State Park. Short viewing path from the picnic lot.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 10-15 min
Rank 5: Wadsworth Falls loop — Middlefield / Middletown area
Viewing only, not a swim stop
30 ft horsetail drop of the Coginchaug in Wadsworth Falls State Park. Short paved overlook.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 5-10 min
Rank 6: Dean's Ravine Trail — Canaan area
Viewing only, not a swim stop
~50 ft Reed Brook drop on the Mohawk Trail in Canaan, a former Appalachian Trail segment.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 25 min
Rank 7: Campbell Falls Trail — Campbell Falls State Park
Viewing only, not a swim stop
Two-tier ~50 ft Whiting River cascade on the Norfolk CT / New Marlborough MA line. Short steep path to the base (Norfolk, Connecticut).
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 15-20 min
Rank 8: Devil's Hopyard Trail — East Haddam
Viewing only, not a swim stop
Classic CT state park around Chapman Falls in East Haddam. Picnic grove, covered bridge, and loop trails.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 45-90 min
Rank 9: Buttermilk Falls Trail — Plymouth
Viewing only, not a swim stop
55–60 ft tiered Hancock Brook cascade in Plymouth's Buttermilk Falls Preserve. Short Mattatuck Trail walk from Lane Hill…
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 20 min
Rank 10: Nonnewaug Falls Trail — Woodbury
Viewing only, not a swim stop
0.9-mi out-and-back through Bethlehem Land Trust fields to a steep multi-tier cascade on the Nonnewaug River.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 25 min