Kinkaid Lake Spillway Falls
Jackson County, Illinois
Your visit at a glance
- Waterfall height
- Not recorded
- Location
- Jackson County, Illinois
- Access status
- Roadside view from the spillway parking area; rocky path beside cascades
- The walk
- Seen from the parking area; short scramble beside the cascades
- Ground & access
- Sandstone ledges that are slippery when wet. A wade through water at the entrance may be needed after rain.
The Kinkaid Lake spillway below Crisenberry Dam drops over several sandstone ledges into a pool. Take Highway 149 west of Murphysboro and turn north on Spillway Road to its end at the dam gate. A 2026 travel article says the falls are visible from the parking lot, and that an unmarked but easy-to-follow rocky path runs beside the cascades. A student newspaper column says the entrance can require wading through water beside the lower pool, deep after heavy rain.
Plan your visit
End of Spillway Road below Crisenberry Dam to the Kinkaid Lake spillway cascades
Islands.com says the falls can be seen from the parking lot by the pool. No walking distance is published for the unmarked path beside the cascades.
Sandstone ledges that are slippery when wet. A wade through water at the entrance may be needed after rain.
Where to start
The Forest Service says Spillway Road dead-ends at the Crisenberry Dam gate and that the dam access has a large parking lot along North Spillway Road. Islands.com says there is a parking area right by the pool.
Timing & water
Flow depends on lake level. Swimming rules and current conditions were not confirmed with the land manager.
Before you go
No fee mentioned in the reviewed sources.
Visitor informationVisit sources
More waterfalls nearby
Within 40 straight-line miles. Road and trail distances will differ.