30. Bash Bish Falls

Distance:	Dayhike
Difficulty :	Easy for children
Distance :	1.5 miles, round trip
Hiking time :	2 hours
High point/elevation gain :	800 feet, 400 feet
Hikable :	March-December
Map :	NY-NJ Trail Conference Map 14

Not only does this easy trail end in a spectacular waterfall (always a crowd-pleaser) with great wading at the base, it goes through two states! This site is also very close to the northern end of Taconic State Park, where you can camp, swim, and picnic. (See Hike 29's description of Rudd Pond and Campground for another hike you can take in Taconic State Park.)

From New York City take the Taconic State Parkway approximately 100 miles north to the exit for NY-199/Red Hook. Follow NY-199 east for approximately 16 miles to Millerton and the junction with NY-22. Drive north on NY-22 for another 15 miles. Just 0.7 mile after the town of Copake Falls, make a sharp right onto NY-344. Follow NY-344 for 1.9 miles to the Bash Bish Falls State Forest parking area on the right. Bash Bish Falls is a popular site for visitors and can be a little crowded on summer weekends, but there is plenty of parking.

Follow your ears to find the start of the trail—you can hear the rush of water in Bash Bish Brook as you get out of your car. Pick up the trail at the northern end of the parking lot by the information signboard.

The trail is a well-maintained broad dirt path that runs along the side of a ravine. It's very easy to follow—kids can safely run ahead all along the way until you get very close to the falls.

At the start, the trail and the stream are on about the same level. There are some beautiful rapids here; follow the short, unofficial side trails to get down to the water. As you walk along, the scenery gets more dramatic, with huge boulders in the stream and massive rock formations.

The path climbs steadily but gently through lovely woods of mixed deciduous trees and hemlocks, rising higher and higher above the streambed. After 0.7 mile you'll arrive at the New York-Massachusetts state line. Stop here for the obligatory picture of the kids with one foot in each state!

From the state line you can easily hear the roar of Bash Bish Falls. Another 0.05 mile brings you to the head of a steep stone staircase that leads down to the base of the falls. (There's a restroom here for kids who get irresistible urges from the sound of all that falling water.)

Go down the steps to get the full view of Bash Bish Falls. What a sight! The waters of Bash Bish Falls begin as a spring high on Mount Washington in the Berkshires. They eventually enter a twisting gorge above the falls to a cliff. The water plunges down from here for 200 feet. Fifty feet from the bottom, a huge, diamond-shaped outcrop of schist and granite divides the stream into two separate cataracts. The waters fall into a deep, icy pool and then tumble farther down a boulder-filled chasm in a series of cascades. All that water will eventually flow into the Hudson River to the west.

The stone steps take you down to a jumble of massive boulders near the base of the falls. The boulders here and farther downstream are great for scrambling on, but keep a very careful eye on the kids. Particularly in the spring when the falls are swollen by melting snow, this area can be dangerous. No swimming is allowed (enforced by patrolling rangers), but it's usually safe to wade in the rock-bottomed pools below the falls. Be warned: The water is always extremely cold.

The kids might be interested in a historic tidbit about Bash Bish Falls. The French acrobat Charles Blondin crossed the falls on a tightrope in 1858, a year after he crossed Niagara Falls. He supposedly said Bash Bish was scarier!

Another historic tidbit often repeated about the falls is the story of their name. The legend supposedly involves a tragic Indian princess named Bash Bish, who threw herself off the falls from unrequited love (in one version) or was falsely accused of adultery and thrown from the falls (in another version). There's no evidence whatsoever for these stroies—they were invented much later, perhaps as a way to make the falls more "romantic" and attractive to tourists.

Return to your car the way you came, gradually leaving the roar of the falls behind you.