Around the lake
Montour Falls, Just South of Watkins Glen
The southern end of Seneca Lake is a narrow neck of flat ground with steep walls on either side. Watkins Glen occupies most of it. Montour Falls sits just beyond, in the same valley, and most visitors drive past without registering that they have left one village and entered another.
Where is Montour Falls?
In Schuyler County, a couple of miles south of Watkins Glen at the foot of Seneca Lake. From our side of Keuka Lake it is roughly twenty-five minutes east, over the ridge that separates the two lakes.
The geography is the same as Watkins Glen: a flat valley floor between high walls, with side streams dropping into it. That is what produces the falls the village is named for.
What is there to see?
The falls themselves, which drop into the village rather than sitting out in a park somewhere. The surrounding valley holds more of them, and the whole area between here and Watkins Glen is one of the densest concentrations of waterfalls in the north-east.
We wrote about why this region has so many, and how to plan around them, in our waterfalls guide.
Fitting it into a day
- Two miles from Watkins Glen, so the two go together naturally.
- About twenty-five minutes from Hammondsport and the foot of Keuka.
- Quieter than its neighbour, particularly on summer weekends.
- The valley floor is flat. The walking gets steep as soon as you leave it.
How does it work with Watkins Glen?
As one outing rather than two. They are two miles apart in the same valley, so seeing both takes no extra driving. Watkins Glen has the state park gorge and the crowds; Montour Falls has the quieter version of the same landscape.
Our guide to Watkins Glen covers the gorge and the rest of the village, and the wineries near Watkins Glen explains how the two lakes sit next to each other.
Can you combine it with Keuka Lake?
Easily. Twenty-five minutes separates the two valleys, so a morning at the falls and an afternoon on Keuka is a comfortable day. It is the single most common shape of visit we see through the season.
We are on the east side of Keuka at 13920 State Route 54, outside Hammondsport, open daily from ten to six. A standard tasting needs no appointment.
Why are there so many falls in this one valley?
Because the glaciers deepened the main valley far faster than the side streams could keep up. Those streams were left entering high above the new valley floor, and they have been cutting downward ever since. Every side stream became a potential waterfall.
The rock does the rest. This part of New York is layered shale and sandstone, hard bands alternating with soft. Water carves the soft layers faster, undercuts the hard ones, and produces the staircases and overhangs that make these gorges look the way they do.
The result is one of the densest concentrations of accessible waterfalls in the north-east, packed into the few miles at the southern end of Seneca Lake. We go through the wider picture in our waterfalls guide.
How does Montour Falls compare with Watkins Glen?
Same valley, same geology, very different volume of visitors. Watkins Glen has the state park, the gorge trail and the racetrack, so it draws people who never intended to see a waterfall. Montour Falls has the landscape without the crowd.
If you have one morning, most people should still take the Watkins Glen gorge: nineteen waterfalls in a single mile is not something you find often. If you have two, or you are here on a summer weekend when the park is full, the quieter village two miles south is the better use of the time.
What is the drive from Keuka Lake like?
About twenty-five minutes over the ridge between the two lakes. The road climbs out of one valley, crosses farmland along the top, and drops into the other. It is one of the more enjoyable short drives in the region rather than a chore.
That ridge is the reason the two lakes feel separate despite being close. We cover the roads worth taking in our scenic drives guide.
What is the walking like?
The valley floor is flat and easy. Everything leaving it climbs quickly, because the walls rise several hundred feet on both sides. That contrast is the character of the place: a level village with steep country immediately above it.
For gorge walking proper, the state park two miles north has the marked trail and the stairs. Our waterfalls guide covers what to expect underfoot and when the water is at its highest.
Twenty-five minutes west, on the other lake. A good place to end a morning among waterfalls.
How far is Montour Falls from Watkins Glen?
About two miles, in the same valley at the foot of Seneca Lake.
How far is it from Keuka Lake?
Roughly twenty-five minutes from Hammondsport, over the ridge between the two lakes.
Is it worth visiting as well as Watkins Glen?
They are close enough that seeing both costs almost no extra driving, and Montour Falls is the quieter of the two.
Written by
The Domaine LeSeurre Team
Céline & Sébastien LeSeurre and the team at Domaine LeSeurre — a family winery on Keuka Lake, in Hammondsport, New York. French roots, Finger Lakes soul.