Otter Falls is a 30-foot waterfall on Esopus Creek in Ulster County, New York, in the Northeastern Highlands region. It lies about 11.4 miles west of Shokan and roughly 54.7 miles southwest of Albany as the crow flies.
At 30 feet it is on the modest side for New York, where the typical waterfall with a recorded height stands around 50.5 feet; it ranks 123rd of 184. By form it is a cascade, descending over a series of rock steps rather than in a single drop.
The Northeastern Highlands are the mountains of northern New England and the Adirondacks, with spruce-fir on the summits and northern hardwood forest of maple, beech and birch below, and countless lakes and boulder-strewn brooks. Fast mountain streams drop over granite and gneiss ledges in chains of falls and pools. Esopus Creek carries 5 recorded waterfalls; the biggest of them reaches 45 feet.
Ulster County holds 49 recorded waterfalls, and several are close by. Shandaken Brook Falls, is about 5.3 miles away. High Falls, is about 6.4 miles away. Peekamoose Falls, is about 7.4 miles away.
Otter Falls is located at 42.0316° N, 74.4198° W. The listing is based on the World Waterfall Database, one of the sources compiled by the U.S. Geological Survey in its inventory of waterfalls and rapids of the conterminous United States. The creek name is confirmed against the federal Geographic Names Information System. The exact position has not yet been verified on aerial imagery, so treat the map pin as approximate. Details on trails, parking and access have not been documented for this waterfall yet.