Mill Pond Falls is a horsetail; inside Quechee Gorge are cascades
Height:
Mill Pond Falls is 30 feet
Source:
Ottauquechee River
Trail
Length:
1.6 miles total trip
Trail
Difficulty:
easy
Altitude
Gain:
down 200 feet to base of gorge
Hiking
Time:
60 minutes
Alt. Names:
n/a
Summary:
“Vermont’s Little Grand Canyon” is the phrase thrown around to describe the mile-long Quechee Gorge. While you really cannot compare the gorge here to the mile deep, 277-mile long Grand Canyon in Arizona, it is impressive compared to all others in New England.
You can overlook the entire gorge from the VT 4 highway bridge. From the bridge, it is 165 feet to the river below. This provides quite a scenic and wild view of the shallow valley that the Ottauquechee River has cut its way through. As for a waterfall, you cannot really see one from the bridge without a pair of binoculars.
By following the South Trail as it parallels the river downstream, you can get a closer inspection of the small cascades within the gorge. If you are looking for major waterfalls, you will not find any within the gorge—you have to hike to the top of the gorge where you will find an artificially-created waterfall flowing over a dam, called Mill Pond Falls. This falls is a horsetail that very few visitors to the gorge bother to find. It is neither powerful nor scenic, but it helps end a rather fine trip to Queechee Gorge, Vermont longest and most famous gorge.
