If you’ve been searching for waterfalls in Pennsylvania then you’ve probably heard of Ricketts Glen State Park. The park is home to 24 waterfalls and actually our entire 5-day trip was centered around going to Ricketts Glen State Park. On our adventure to Ricketts Glen we saw 22 waterfalls in a single day with all but one being on the same trail!
Getting to Ricketts Glen State Park
For most people you are going to want to do the Falls Trail which allows you to see 21 waterfalls on a single loop trail. To find the Falls Trail you’ll need to park at the Lake Rose Trailhead parking lot, which have the following GPS coordinates: 41.330195, -76.292250. The trail starts right at the parking lot and you should see a big sign right by the trail head.
Before you head to the Lake Rose Parking lot you should take the time to check out Adams Falls, which is not on the Falls Trail. The GPS coordinates for the parking lot for Adams Falls are: 41.299377, -76.274661.
Exploring Ricketts Glen State Park
We started our adventure into Ricketts Glen State Park at Adam’s Falls. You should be able to hear the falls from the parking lot and there is a short trail to get down to the falls. Adams Falls is actually one of our favorite waterfalls in the park just because of how unique it really is.
After Adams Falls it was time to head to the Falls Trail. It is about a 10-15 minute drive from the Adams Falls Parking lot to the Lake Rose Trailhead parking lot. The Falls Trail is basically a loop trail that is made up of a few different parts. You have Ganoga Glen, Glen Leigh, Waters Meet (Where Ganoga Glen and Glen Leigh meet), and the Highland Trail. Here is a map to give you an idea of what we are talking about.
We decided that we would be going down Ganoga Glen, then going past Waters Meet to see 3 more waterfalls, then hike back up Glen Leigh. As you start on the trail from the Lake Rose parking lot be sure to follow the signs for Ganoga Glen. You’ll eventually see signs that say Falls Trail. As you start on the Falls Trail waterfalls will start appearing.
Out of the 10 waterfalls on Ganoga Glen our favorites were definitely Ganoga and Seneca. Ganoga is quite impressive as it is 94 feet tall, making it the highest waterfall in the park and one of the tallest waterfalls in Pennsylvania. Seneca falls is only listed at 12 feet, but it is a really cool section of cascades and the creek sort of opens up where the falls are.
After the 10 waterfalls on Ganoga Glen you’ll come to waters meet. This is where Ganoga Glen and Glen Leigh meet. You’ll know you are there as there is a large bridge and a sign that tells you where you are. You could head left and go up Glen Leigh, but you should continue down past Waters Meet to see 3 more waterfalls which include Harrison Wright Falls, Sheldon Reynolds Falls, and Murray Reynolds Falls.
It seems like Harrison Wright Falls is the place where people go swimming. Swimming is prohibited on in the water holes below the waterfalls, and you can actually be fined if a park ranger finds you swimming. I guess since the Harrison Wright Falls are past Waters Meet people think that it is ok to swim there. There was a large group of kids swimming when we made our way down there, luckily I was able to edit them out of our photos.
Once you reach Murray Reynolds falls it might be a good time to take a break and eat lunch. Kayla and I packed a lunch and enjoyed it sitting right by the falls. Many people pick Waters Meet as the place to have lunch, but we think Murray Reynolds is better as it is much more secluded and less busy.
After lunch we had to make our way back up to Waters Meet and then head up Glen Leigh. Since you are going uphill this part of the journey might be a little harder, but you’ll see 8 more waterfalls as you head up Glen Leigh.
The two waterfalls that we really enjoyed on Glen Leigh were R.B. Ricketts and F.L. Ricketts. R.B. Ricketts opens up really wide and there is even a sort of side waterfall and F.L. Ricketts cascades quite beautifully.
After the last waterfall on Glen Leigh you’ll come to the Highland Trail. This will take you back to the Lake Rose parking lot. It is about a 1.2 mile hike back and it pretty flat most of the time so it is not all that bad. About half-way through the trail you’ll come to the Midway Cavasse, which is a large rock formation that the trail goes through. Just follow the trail and you’ll make it back to the parking lot!
This is definitely the longest hike that we’ve done together, but it was so much fun and while most of our adventures center around a single waterfall we saw 22 today, which is just insane! It was so much fun seeing all of the different waterfalls and having our lunch right in front of a waterfall basically by ourselves. We definitely go a workout today, but as always it was great experiencing 22 waterfalls together for the first time!
Things to Know About Ricketts Glen
The Falls Trail gives you access to most of the waterfall in the park, but take the time to see the 3 waterfalls past Waters Meet and Adams Falls.
While the paths to see the falls are clear and easy to follow there are many rock steps and it can get muddy so make sure you have proper shoes. We saw a handful of people fall while on the trail.
If you do the entire Falls Trail journey it is around 7 miles so be prepared for that, bring plenty of water and packing a lunch is not a bad idea.
This is a busy park so expect to see a lot of people.
Swimming is not allowed, although you might see people swimming. If a park ranger does spot you, you could be looking at a hefty fine.
Ricketts Glen Photo Gallery
