Judds Falls is a 122-foot horsetail waterfall in New York, where Canajoharie Creek pours into a steep gorge just north of the village of Cherry Valley in Otsego County. The feature drops as a single veiling horsetail from the rim of a wooded gorge.
The falls
The creek slides over angled rock and breaks into dozens of thin threads falling to a bench, where the water spreads across the stone. The curtain averages about 30 feet wide and can reach 40 to 50 feet in high water. Measurements from 2018 establish the height at 122 feet, with lidar data indicating about 120 feet, though older surveys cited 135 feet. The gorge sits at the fringe of the Helderberg Escarpment, with salt and sulfur springs along its northwest side. Canajoharie Creek rises less than a mile upstream, south of US 20.
Getting there
A small gravel pull-off for two or three cars sits off NY 166 near the crest of the falls, with room for about two more vehicles at the Salt Springville Road intersection. A path crosses a clearing to the gorge rim, a few minutes' walk, then bears right and drops into the gorge, reaching the base about a quarter mile from the road; the full out-and-back route spans 1.1 miles, rated moderate. The path is unmarked and unmaintained, and no official park or land manager is listed for the site.
When to go
The creek drains a small watershed and frequently runs dry in summer except after storms. Flow is best after sustained heavy rain or snowmelt, with early spring bringing peak volume, while late spring or autumn rains allow exploring upstream from the base.
On site
The descent is steep, muddy and littered with landslide debris, and there is no disability access. The gorge is about 150 feet deep. In September 2022 a 32-year-old woman fell more than 100 feet here, requiring rescuers to hike about a mile through the woods to reach her. Visitors should keep well back from the rim; the descent is undertaken at one's own risk.
History and name
The falls also go by Tekaharawa Falls and appear on an 1868 map of the Town of Cherry Valley. The Judd name is associated with the family of Oliver Judd, a Cherry Valley iron founder, magistrate, state legislator and postmaster, whose home stood beside the falls.
Nearby
Salt Springville Road Falls is about 1.3 miles away, Dugway Falls on Brimstone Creek about 6.3 miles and Van Hornesville Falls on Otsquago Creek about 6.8 miles. Canajoharie Falls, about 9.9 miles away, is on the same Canajoharie Creek farther downstream.
Distances are straight-line.