Can any waterfall be truly ugly? Maybe, if so, Red Mill would be the top of my list. Of course, it has some strikes against it, being it's in the middle of a city, has all sorts of dams and other industrial what-not around. It probably also doesn't help that I was there on a brutally hot summer day when the water was very low and a bit muddy.
For those who don't know, Red Mill Falls are located in the middle of the city of Rensselaer, NY. If you get in the right spot, you can actually almost forget where you are, and maybe enjoy the falls. Russell Dunn describes them on page 98 of the Hudson Valley Guide. He says to park on the road above and view from the top, and that there may be access from the bottom, within reason, over private land. I parked on the side street where normal parking is allowed, and walked to the top and then down along the falls. Some local kids were fooling around at the bottom when I got there, and no one seemed to care as I wandered around. I don't know who exactly owns the falls themselves and I haven't been back there in years to see if the situation has changed. I don't recall any posted signs, so it may just be a matter of finding a place to park.
There are several parts to the falls as they cascade down some very tilted sedimentary rock layers.
From the top, you can see across the Hudson River to the skyline of Albany.
There are probably many more views I could have taken pictures of, but it was so hot that day all I could think of was getting back in the air-conditioned car.
Red Mill Falls
- hobkyl
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kind of nice. great view from the top for sure.
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Anyone know of an approximate location or cross streets near the falls? I am trying to incorporate all of the falls in NYS into a convenient google map, but i find no other info on these falls.
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Here's a quick Google map of the area. I parked on 3rd Avenue and walked up to High Street to where it crosses the stream, then walked down the stream. There is also access from the bottom at the end of Ring Street, and there did appear to be some small parking at the very end of the road but there are a couple of buildings on both sides of the road and I didn't want to possibly block them. This was years ago and I haven't been back to see what the area is like now.
LGD