Swatara Falls, Pennsylvania

2024 Update: Swatara Falls is not accessible to the public anymore, and likely hasn’t been for a few years. When I visited in 2013, it was. Directions have been removed!

Swatara Falls seems to be a waterfall that can be difficult to find information about. I found some information about it in a book about Pennsylvania waterfalls, but really didn’t find a whole lot of other content online. So now I’m here to record my experience in finding Swatara Falls!

My relatives live about 1.5 hours from the falls, so I asked my uncle to take me to the area. The drive was pretty uneventful until we got to the falls. Even then, the drive wasn’t difficult, just a little bit more complicated than it needed to be. The directions I had were slightly confusing, so I ended up thinking that I needed to follow the gravel “roads” on the same side as the parking lot. My uncle drove down one of these “roads”, and I wouldn’t suggest driving down anything but the main road.

After getting confused for about 40 minutes, we finally confirmed that the waterfall seemed to be on the other side of the road from the parking lot. The directions we had didn’t say to cross the road! After finally finding the falls, it was just 20 minutes or so to the falls. The hike was about 0.8 miles one-way, and it wasn’t particularly difficult.

Swatara Falls is about 25′ tall, and is a very enjoyable waterfall. It was still flowing at the end of August, and if it were open to the public, you’d likely be able to see it year-round. In the spring, you’re probably going to see a more powerful waterfall. Swatara Falls is relatively distant from other falls, but I think it might be worth it to search out this waterfall on a nice, sunny day (though for photographs, overcast might be better).

Accessibility: not open to public
Height: 22′
Length of Hike: not open to public

Where in the World is Swatara Falls?

Responses

Theresa Kimmel

November 17, 2013 at 12:08 am

I hiked to the waterfall today (11/16/13) with my two daughters. Thanks to your directions and discriptions of the area we had absolutely no trouble finding it. Thanks. Nice hike and the area was beautiful even in November.

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stwaz

March 11, 2014 at 11:15 am

My daughter and I made it to the falls on Sunday, thanks to your directions. Even in ankle deep snow we could follow the path very well. It’s beautiful in the winter, btw. Looking forward to going back in the spring!

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1. waterfallrecord
  
  March 18, 2014 at 5:51 am
  
  Glad you were able to find them! I couldn’t find very good directions before I went, so I hoped I could explain it fairly well!
  
  Reply
Denny Zeigler

April 14, 2014 at 6:01 pm

Awesome! I hadn’t heard of this one before. I will definitely make a point to get there in the next few weeks. I get over that way often kayaking, so I am usually in the area. Thanks for the great directions!

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Matt Brosey (@M_Broz)

July 18, 2015 at 2:20 am

I went there in mid July of 2015, and these directions worked! Though, it was overgrown with plants and trees, the trails were easy to find.The hike is a little longer and make sure you bring the proper attire and bug spray is a must! The actual waterfall is a lot bigger than in many pictures, so if you’re in the area or just driving by it, it’s totally worth the hike to see it.

Reply
1. waterfallrecord
  
  July 18, 2015 at 2:26 am
  
  Glad to hear the directions worked! Surprised the trail was somewhat overgrown. When my uncle and I visited, it was a rather wide trail and it may have been recently groomed at the time…And I think there were a number of intersecting trails, so it could possibly end up being longer. It only took about 20 minutes to hike in one direction. And I agree, I won’t go anywhere in Pennsylvania without bug spray, more because I seem to find ticks on me every time I don’t use it there.
  
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Kris

July 2, 2024 at 3:56 pm

We tried to go to the falls today, but there are no trespassing signs and the falls are marked no access. So we did not continue. All the parking areas were marked no parking as well. Sad that such a treasure can’t be enjoyed. On to the next destination.

Reply
1. waterfallrecord
  
  July 2, 2024 at 6:19 pm
  
  Thanks for letting me know about this! I’ve updated the post and removed any directions.
  
  Reply
2. Rachel Yingling
  
  September 2, 2024 at 3:50 pm
  
  we also tried to go back to the falls recently and saw the no trespassing signs everywhere. So very sad that falls can’t be enjoyed anymore as it is one of the most beautiful around. Wondering who owns it as I would love to turn this back into something for the public to enjoy. Breaks my heart.
  
  Reply