WaterfallNear Me

Potter's Falls

Tompkins County, New York

Your visit at a glance

Waterfall height
Not recorded
Location
Tompkins County, New York
Access status
City natural area; unmarked trail past the dams
The walk
About 2.2 miles one way
Ground & access
Moderate. Confusing network of paths, steep and muddy in places. Blue blazes stop at the dams; beyond them the trail is unmarked and not well maintained. The City trail site calls the trails unimproved and minimally maintained.
NYFalls: Potter's Falls and the Ithaca Reservoir Dams

Potter's Falls, also called Green Tree Falls, is a 25-foot cascade on Six Mile Creek below a 100-foot cliff, in the Six Mile Creek Natural Area south of Ithaca. From the Mulholland Wildflower Preserve lot, cross either footbridge to the south and follow the blue-marked trail with the creek on your right. Stay right at the 0.45-mile fork. At about 0.66 miles a side path drops to the creek and the 8-foot and 30-foot dams. Back at that junction, take the right trail up, make a sharp right at 0.8 miles, and reach the top of the larger dam at about 1 mile. Past the dams the path is unmarked: cross the open area, keep the creek down on your right, pass a swampy area and a gully, and descend. At a fork near the falls, go left for a view from above or right to the creek below the pool.

Plan your visit

Mulholland Wildflower Preserve lot on Giles Street, blue-marked trail past the First and Second Dams, then unmarked paths along Six Mile Creek to Potter's Falls

NYFalls gives about 2.2 miles one way and says loops can make a round trip of 5 miles or more.

Moderate. Confusing network of paths, steep and muddy in places. Blue blazes stop at the dams; beyond them the trail is unmarked and not well maintained. The City trail site calls the trails unimproved and minimally maintained.

Where to start

Mulholland Wildflower Preserve lot, about 500 feet inside the entrance off Giles Street, with room for about 20 cars. If full, NYFalls suggests the trailhead on the west side of the Giles Street bridge.

Timing & water

NYFalls says the area is open daylight hours, year-round. The creek is a city drinking-water source; swimming above Second Dam is illegal. NYFalls reports the 60-foot dam above the falls is off limits.

Before you go

NYFalls lists admission as free.

Visitor information
Visit sources

More waterfalls nearby

Within 40 straight-line miles. Road and trail distances will differ.

Explore New York

Waterfall location

Tompkins County, New York.

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