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Austin Falls

Directions

3.0 miles east of where these Routes 30 and 8 come together in Speculator, turn on Old Route 30.  From the south, this intersection is about 6.5 miles from the Routes 30 and 8 intersection in Wells.  This is a seasonal road not maintained in the winter.  At 0.1 miles down this road, you will cross a bridge.  At 2.0 miles, there is a second bridge, a one-lane relic.  Park on the roadside at the 2.7 mile point.

County: Hamilton
Town: Wells
USGS Map: Page Mountain
Waterway: Sacandaga River
Latitude: N 43° 30' 05"
Longitude: W 74° 16' 46"
Drop: 40'
Type: Step
Region: Off NY 30 between Speculator and Wells
Parking: Roadside
Trail type: Dirt
Length of hike: 0.1 mile/2 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Accessibility: Public
Name: Official

Wells Quadrangle

Austin FallAustin Falls is located on a stretch of NYS Routes 30 and 8 that run together from Speculator to just north of Wells.  The directions in the side-bar will result in the shortest hike to get to the falls, but they do warrant a comment.  This road is paved, but don't read too much into that.  The pavement is cracked and heaved.  Just about the time you feel comfortable doing about 30 MPH, you'll come to a bump where you wish you had been going 10!

We have read, either in books or on-line, that there are two other alternatives to get to these falls.  Having said that, we have not used those routes.  The first of these options is from the other end of this Old Route 30.  From the main highway, you will pass a road where an abandoned bridge is visible.  The is a barricade across the ends of it.  Assuming you can walk over the bridge, the falls are 0.8 miles down the road.  The second option is to drive 0.8 miles north on the main highway and walk through the woods to the falls from that side of the river.  As we stated before, these two methods were not tried.

Austin Falls is a multi-step drop that covers about 300 yards of the river.  It appears to be a continuous waterslide but at the top are some boulders.  The water pouring through here gives the illusion of a plunge at that point due to the splashing off the rocks.

The Sacandaga River flows through a number of lakes as it makes its way to the Hudson River whose final destination is the Atlantic Ocean.

Last update:  August 26, 2017

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Austin Falls Austin Falls
Austin Falls Austin Falls
Austin Falls Austin Falls
Austin Falls Austin Falls

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