Kaaterskill Falls accident

[Mark Schaefer]

Here is a link to a story about a 20 year old woman who survived a 180' fall from the top of the Kaaterskill Falls in the Catskills.

I was at the falls yesterday, and was heading down from the top at about 1 pm as a light rain began to fall. That was a couple of hours before the accident. The foliage at the falls was beautiful and was attracting many visitors. It is a wonderful time of the year to view the falls, but do be careful. Most who fall there do not survive.

 

[Rob S]

Holy crap! I've been to the falls many times and often thought a fall from there would not be survivable. Landing in the water saved her, but her injuries are still severe. Thanks for the link, Mark.

(I've attached a picture from my last hike there this past March just to show those who have never been there what the falls look like.)

 

[Jay H]

Thanks for the link Mark, I heard about this on another local forum and it quotes 120' fall but mentioned a helicopter rescue which led me to believe that she actually survived! Amazing and amazingly luck women! I guess she kind of got her birthday present, unluck to have fallen in the first place but extremely lucky to be alive.

Jay

 

[Tom Rankin]

accident

I've been there many times too. It's usually overrun with tourists. The falls, the pool, and the view are awesome. But I've often looked at the stream and decided not to cross at the lip of the falls. Too dangerous. The Rocks at the top are also overhung quite a bit. Some day, the rocks will give way, and that will be really bad if people are up there.

 

[Mark Schaefer]

I am not sure where the 120' figure came from. The generally quoted height of the upper falls is 175', and lower falls 85'. The WRGB website, TV 6 from Schenectady mentioned 120', however, their evening news broadcast stated 160'. They showed footage of the top of the upper falls and a shot over the edge down to the pool where the rescue workers were working on the woman. Whatever the height it is amazing that the woman survived and was conscious through the entire ordeal. I will post again when I hear an update on her condition.

I agree with Tom that it is unwise to cross the stream at the top of the falls. There are a couple of downed logs across the stream about 0.1 miles from the top of the falls. The log furthest from the falls is a couple of feet in diameter and the safest choice. I used it yesterday. It is at the site of an old dam that was built by the owner of the 1852 Laurel House hotel to impound the waters during the dry season. For a fee of 25 cents he would turn on the falls for a few minutes.

I went back to South Mountain again today to photograph the foliage in the fog. It was amazing how the wet the trails had become from the previous day's rain. I judged the fog to be too thick to be able to see the falls from any of the normal vantage points so I didn't even go near the falls. The foliage is still very beautiful and worthy of a visit in the next few days. It will be very crowded this weekend.

 

[jbreen]

This is the first I heard of someone surviving the fall, hopefully her injuries will have no lasting effects. While I frequent this area often, in all seasons, I have never felt the urge to cross the stream near the falls.

Here is a shot from last March, showing the pool, albeit frozen. I have seen the height recorded from 160-180 feet to this pool, and feet 85 to the bottom.

Jim

 

[Nadine]

Geez, maybe it's me, but I think that crossing the top of a 175 foot waterfall is fairly insane.

 

[Raymond]

Mark, did you find that rock carving to... whatever-that-dog's-name-was?

 

[Mark Schaefer]

Raymond, I looked again for the memorial to the dog Vite, but could not find it amongst all the 19th, 20th, and 21st century graffiti at the top of the falls. For those not familiar with the fatal 1868 canine accident, the following is from the out of print "Walks in the Catskills" guidebook by John Bennet and Seth Masia:

Vite, who was exceptionally smart, had been trained to jump high in the air whenever his master whistled a command. One afternoon while the two of them were standing at the precipice (of the upper 175' Kaaterskill Falls) taking in the view, the master absent-mindedly began to whistle .... Afterword, he was so heartbroken by his pet's loyalty and obedience that he had a Catskill stonecutter engrave a stone in Vite's memory. You can still see it beside the falls.​

The same book also relates another fall from the top of the lower 85' falls:

19 year old Charles Foster went over the edge in 1850 and miraculously survived with nothing more serious than a broken leg and a broken shoulder blade. A "high freshet" (high water), we are told "lessened" the force of his fall. Peter Schutt and Joseph Beach had the task of carrying him back up the gorge to the Laurel House. It can't have been easy: Foster weighed 200 pounds. After 6 weeks in Mrs. Schutt's care, the victim recovered enough to return to his home. He came back the following year, though, and stayed at the Catskill Mountain House. The notation "alive and kicking" appears beside his name in the hotel register.​

The stream at the top of the upper falls can appear deceptively easy to cross when the water is somewhat low as it was last Thursday. The water is nonetheless swift and there is nothing to grab onto if you slip. The site is all too easy to reach as it is just 300 yards from a parking lot. If one wishes to reach the lower falls the safer route requires a stream crossing. The most sane crossing is definitely further up stream.

 

[Raymond]

Mark, I don't remember the carving as being especially close to the falls.

If the falls are here...

(x
_______v
the memorial might be over here.

I think I climbed down onto a ledge for a less obstructed view and discovered the carving on the wall behind me.

I'll have to plan a trip out there next year to see if I can find it again.

 

[rondak46]

I just stumbled on to this thread.

The carving is to the left of the falls.

When you cross behind the falls and get to the left side you can climb up (scale-up ) a rock face using small (one-inch) ledges. You then come to a swinging Iron bar (if it is still there). This bar assists you in getting by a tricky steep spot. At this spot you begin to ascend again and this is where the plaque is.

This is the old route up to the top. It also gets you to the highest tier where you can, again, go behind the falls. Behind the falls at this upper ledge, you are about twenty feet from the top. It is very cool because the water falls right in front of you and is completely silent. The water hitting the rocks below is barely audible. It is truly a fantastic spot to lose yourself in meditation. If the iron bar is gone, however, i don't see how it can be accessed from the bottom. I climbed this route and continued to the top so I know it can be reached from both the top and bottom.

from memory, the plaque reads:

VITE

Bayer of dogs
leapt from the platform above
to the rocks below
Sans a perot, sans a reproche'


I don't know why I remenber the word "perot" as such. It does not come up in a French - English dictionary. I remember asking a friend to translkate the french and he said it meant "without pitty, without fear". Pity is "pitie'" in french, I don't know why I remember it as "perot".

It is a very nice plaque, with smooth, detailed scrolls.

I'd love to take you there Mark.

Mike

 

[masshysteria]

Thanks for the info Mark, and the pictures are wonderful. Dr. Marino, the girl's aunt, commented that the area needs to be signed and fenced in. I certainly sympathize with her and the girl's family. But we all know that signs and a fence aren't going to stop a inquisitive 20 year old from getting close to the edge to look over. Heck, I doubt it would stop this 46 yr. old from taking a peek.

Every couple of years, it seems like someone gets killed or injured at Bish Bash (or is it Bash Bish) Falls, yet there are signs and fences there. Just last month, someone was seriously hurt when they got too close to the edge of Tannery Falls in Savoy.

Could any of you folks supply directions on how to get there, from the Berkshires? It sounds like a really beautiful spot!

 

[Tom Rankin]

If the iron bar is gone, however, i don't see how it can be accessed from the bottom.

I've climbed up and down both sides of Kaaterskill falls. Top to bottom. It was a long time ago, and the terrain seems to change quickly there, so that might not mean much now. I was just there yesterday, and it seems to be badly eroded in many places.

I agree that something should be done there to control the crowds, the erosion, litter, etc.

 

[Jay H]

It's Bash Bish falls, I just remember that it's alphabetic!

As far as getting to Kaaterskill Falls, it is right on Rt23A between Palenville and Tannersville. Depending on where you are in the Berkshires, you can take Rt 23 all the way from Great Barrington, MA west til you get to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge over the hudson. Eventually once you cross the Hudson, you can pick up Rt 23A and simply follow that til you cross the blue line and Palenville. There is parking once you pass the falls by the road (can't miss it, it's on a switchback in the road). Parking is about 1/2 mile past the falls on the left. The hike is about 1.5 miles from the road and can be wet. Good footwear is needed if you want to climb to the top. Like mentioned here, there are a lot of deaths from accidental falls here!

Jay

 

[Tom Rankin]

Jay, it's only 1/2 mile one way, if the sign is correct. Unless you mean the round trip, which could be 1.5 if you go all the way to the top, on the 'herd paths', which are more like gully washes now.

I'm sure you know this, but for others, you can also come at the falls from the top. If you go past the trailhead parking lot a few miles, there is a sign for North Lake. Follow this road to a road on the right with a Dead End sign and 2 Stop signs. (It might be Laurel ?? ). It ends at a small dirt parking lot, and from there, the falls are only 200-300 yards down a gentle slope.

 

[Puma concolor]

Laurel House Road.

 

[Jay H]

Tom, sorry, I'm typically at work posting these stuff (shhhhh!) and typically doing this from memory.

I remember trying to go to the falls from the top, when we were hiking the escarpment trail, but it was long time ago and I think we thought it would take too long as we were expecting to hang out at the many viewpoints on the southern part of the Escarpment and also at the old Catskill Mountain House ruins.

Jay

 

[Tom Rankin]

I remember trying to go to the falls from the top, when we were hiking the escarpment trail, but it was long time ago and I think we thought it would take too long as we were expecting to hang out at the many viewpoints on the southern part of the Escarpment and also at the old Catskill Mountain House ruins.

Ah yes! There are 3 ways to get there. The last way is from the park itself. The mountain house site is pretty cool. Amazing that a building that large used to stand there, and now, zippo, save for a stone stair case.

 

[Mark Schaefer]

Raymond and Mike, Thanks for the tips on the Vite memorial location. I descended down that left side of the upper falls about 30 years ago. I do remember seeing the few remnants of the concrete stairs and metal railings that were built by the owner of the Laurel House. I also remember the narrow ledges all too well. Descents down that side can be difficult. I have heard that the memorial is not too far down from the top, and above the really treacherous narrow ledges. I think I will wait for the winter ice to leave before exploring that slope again. I may take you up on your offer Mike.

Concerning the dangers at the falls, I doubt that fences at the top of the falls would help. Besides detracting from the natural beauty, they might only provide a false sense of security. If fences are not meticulously maintained they could give way as people lean on them trying to get a better view. The Mohonk Resort has had problems with their cliff top fences, and I cannot imagine that the state would have the ability to maintain fences as well as the Mohonk staff does. Warning signs at the Laurel House Road parking lot and on the path to the top of the falls might help warn the casual visitor from going in over their heads.

A hiker's bridge over the creek above the falls could solve the dangerous stream crossing. But I believe the DEC would be reluctant to provide one for the fear that it would only increase the hiker traffic and erosion at the falls. Over the last 30 years they have closed the section of the Escarpment trail between the base and top of the falls (the horseshoe bend on Route 23A was the original Escarpment trailhead). Also the path that leads behind the upper falls was once a yellow blazed side trail off the old Escarpment Trail. Both of these trails were "closed" in the failed hope that it would reduce the erosion and usage of the area. The ledge behind the upper falls is actually quite stable as evidenced by an 1872 engraving by Winslow Homer entitled "Under the Falls, Catskills Mountain", a copy of which is on page 133 of Roland Van Zandt's book The Catskill Mountain House. The ledge and large amphitheater behind the falls appear identical to current conditions. The steep slopes on both sides of the falls, however, continue to erode. Most of the injuries at the falls occur on these steep slopes and not from spectacular mishaps over the two brinks of the falls.

To continue on Tom's statement about how little remains of the Catskill Mountain House. I find it equally amazing at how little remains of the Laurel House at the falls, and of the Hotel Kaaterskill at the top of South Mountain.

 

[moose_mckenzie]

The last time I was at Kaaterskill Falls was in the early 1990's. It's always overrun by tourists. Like other popular sites -- Heart Lake, the Garden and Lake George -- it should be avoided at heavy times.

I heartily agree with Tom Rankin that it's heavily eroded; it has been that way since the 1970's. The Escarpment Trail used to start at Bastion Falls on Rte 23, but, in the 80's DEC decided that going up past the falls was too dangerous and started the trail past the top of the falls.

Ther used to be barriers and other things to keep people from wandering in and around the falls. Barriers disappear and, often, people are seen wandering the shelf behind the falls. Short of closing the area, there is little the State can do to control access.

Moose