Chataqua Gorge State Forest (Picnic Area)
Follow Hannum road to the end, and you’ll arrive in a parking lot where you’ll see two paths to the left hand side-one leading uphill, and one leading down. Take the one leading down. This is a wide and clearly defined trail, but it appears to be prone to wash outs, and is fairly steep. I wouldn’t hike this in the rain. Follow the wide trail to the end, where it opens into a small clearing, and from there diverges into multiple little trails by the river. Take a short root stair on the right hand side down to the pool, which is visible from the clearing. To reach the upper swimming hole, hike up the sides of the river as long as it is safe to do so. The rocks in the river are slippery so don’t attempt if it is high flow. The sides of the gorge are lose shale, and are not safe for climbing. Use caution when exploring in this area, as it is DEC land and there isn’t a ranger station.
We didn’t find either pool to be very deep, and they would be more suitable for wading, but we visited in August so the water level might have been low.
Location Details
- 20 min.
- +42 14.402, -79 35.227
- Moderate to Difficult
- 716-363-2052
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