Waterfalls and Swimming Holes in Litchfield Hills
The Litchfield Hills are the best place in Connecticut to stack several waterfall stops in one day, with tiered gorges, brook cascades, and a few lake beaches that fit naturally into the same loop.
Swim access changes with postings and season, so use each guide for what is allowed now, not the map alone. One pin is Bash Bish across the Massachusetts line because many northwest Connecticut trips already include it. For capital-region planning, see Waterfalls and Swimming Spots Near Hartford Area, or the statewide stack on Top 10 Waterfalls in Connecticut.
Rank 1: Kent Falls — 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 2: Enders Falls — Granby
Five-tier cascade in Enders State Forest, Granby. Popular (and unofficial) swim pools — cliff jumping is extremely dangerous.
- Walk
- 15-25 min
Rank 3: Campbell Falls — Salisbury
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 4: Great Falls — Canaan / Salisbury / Falls Village
Viewing only, not a swim stop
50-ft dam-controlled Housatonic falls at Falls Village. Spectacular after spring releases; no swim/jump.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 5 min
Rank 5: Buttermilk Falls — 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 6: Dean's Ravine Falls — North Canaan
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: Nonnewaug Falls — 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
Rank 8: Bulls Bridge Cascades — Kent
Viewing only, not a swim stop
~12 ft chain of Housatonic cascades at the 1842 Bulls Bridge covered bridge. AT crosses here; viewing only.
- Can you swim?
- No swimming. View only
- Walk
- 10 min
Rank 9: Macedonia Brook State Park — Kent
Kent state park with small brook wading pools and the 7-mile Cobble Mountain blue loop.
- Can you swim?
- Swimming allowed when posted rules and staffing say it is open
- Walk
- 20 min
Rank 10: Bantam Lake — Morris
Connecticut's largest natural lake; mostly private shoreline, with Sandy Beach and Morris Town Beach as the public swim…
- Walk
- roadside
Rank 11: Bash Bish Falls — Massachusetts (state-line day trip from northwest Connecticut)
State's signature twin waterfall on the MA / NY line in Mount Washington. DCR Bash Bish Falls State Park; no swimming, no… (Mount Washington,…
- Walk
- 20 min down, 30 min up