High Falls (Eels Creek)

High Falls (Eels Creek)

To compliment Michelle’s recent post titled Blood Sucking Leeches!, in which she mentioned High Falls, I thought I’d share some additional info and a video of the the crew at TwoCanoe when we took a one hour hike to see the falls. This is one of the 14 different falls in Ontario that share the same name and despite what the name may suggest they are not as high as one may think. These Falls are located on Eels Creek north of Peterborough, ON. They are one of the few falls in the area that does not have a dam or lock built on or around it. You can also access the falls by canoe (or kayak) and the area is a popular spot for campers.

You’ll find a very short video to prove we actually made it to the falls, the hike is not very challenging for the seasoned hiker, but you will find some technical challenges along the way.  You will need to cross a fallen log to get over a small creek, and the trail does contain a marsh and smaller hills to overcome. Although it took us only an hour to make it into the falls, the average time to make it in, especially with children, may be 1.5 to 2 hours. As Michelle mentioned in her previous post, she had a run in with some fairly large leeches while in the water on a different trip. We did not venture into the water on this hike (aside from cooling our feet off of the shoreline), and so we left the park unscathed by the blood suckers.

The best time to reach the falls is early spring when the thawing ice results in runnoff to fuel the falls, and less people due to the colder weather. Throughout the summer months, the falls can be quite crowded with campers and hikers. This trail is not only popular with the locals, as we have seen many Europeans sporting their beloved speedo’s there. If you wait until later in the year, you may find yourself having to deal with garbage that many of the less eco friendly visitors leave behind. With the help of a few volunteers the park does get cleaned up, but everyone should became proactive in the ‘leave no trace’ principle so these natural environments can be enjoyed for generations to come.

We hope you can all make it out to hike to these falls, as we have enjoyed them over the years, but we ask that you leave no trace of your visit, to this or any other park. We should all be stewards of the environment to protect and secure these areas which are crucial to many plants, animals and outdoors enthusiasts.

Happy Hiking!