Sign at the park entrance, a few miles off Route 2 (Mohawk Trail)
A few months ago, I did some research about interesting sites in our current area of the Berkshire Mountains in Western Massachusetts. Tannery Falls in Savoy Mountain State Forest seemed like a great afternoon excursion. Especially after driving by the State Forest sign on Route 2 – also called the Mohawk Trail – frequently when running errands in North Adams, I moved the trip higher on my list of “Things I want to do before we leave Heath”.
Mark and I decided to make the trip to Tannery Falls the day after we attended the annual reggae festival in Charlemont. After an afternoon of great music, warm weather, and secretly drinking volumes of our non-allowed, but widely tolerated BYO drinks (How could they not sell alcohol at a music festival?), we thought a short hike down to the falls and back, would be the perfect antidote to an irie, but lazy Saturday, and would offer the right amount of exercise while feeling a bit jaded.
The short-cut from Charlemont would have brought us to our destination in 20 minutes, but, unfortunately, that road (Black Brook Road) was closed. This meant we had to drive all around the State Forest and enter at its opposite end, a 45-minute endeavor. There is an $8 parking fee ($10 for non-MA resident cars) for the day use area at North Pond, where there are camping facilities as well, but everywhere else (including the falls) parking and visiting is free. The roads in the park are mostly gravel, but our little Prius managed to bring us to Tannery Road. Then, the “trouble” started with a warning sign and a potholed road resembling a motor cycle circuit. The only way to reach the parking at the falls was to leave our extremely low clearance car near the sign and walk the 2 miles of dirt road. So much for a quick visit.
We were not even going to try with our Prius…
Walking along a road did not sound very appealing. I had brought a printed map of the park and we soon found a more attractive alternative. We walked the 3-mile Tannery Trail, which winded through the shady forest, along some giant mud puddles and over a slightly descending path to the main parking area for the falls. Due to its remote and relatively inaccessible location, the walk down to the river and the falls was not busy.
In about ten minutes, Mark, Jenny and I reached the bottom of this short, well-maintained trail. While taking a break and a sip of water on the rocks, we admired tall Tannery Falls, plummeting down in different tiers. The pool underneath the falls offers some welcome refreshment on hot days. That Sunday, it was cloudy and relatively cool: a perfect day for a hike. Jenny enjoyed a drink of clear, cold river water. She prefers natural water, whether in rivers, lakes or mud puddles to our tap water from home.
We explored the valley floor a little bit more to find another set of waterfalls where the river forks: Parker Brook Falls. This area was pretty scenic as well, but the falls did not carry a lot of water. In the past, you could have a peek down from the top of Parker Brook, but now you are discouraged to do so.
The climb back up to the falls parking lot was not a big deal. We still had some energy left, so instead of following the bumpy dirt road back to where our car was left, we took a trail across the street that appeared more attractive. Ross Brook Trail follows the stream with the same name. Just when I thought we had gotten away with some easy hiking and no sweating, the trail climbed gradually to hook up with Tannery Road again, half an hour or so later. It does feel good to get the heart pumping and to realize you did some exercise, even when you weren’t meant to be!
Before walking the last stretch of Tannery Road back to the car, we made a slight detour to check out “Balanced Rock”, a giant boulder and remnant from the ice age, in the middle of the woods. Another one was located within sight… as if a giant had dropped the two massive nuggets precariously amidst the trees.
Our planned walk had turned into a much longer hike than anticipated, but we were all pleased to have hit the trails. The end destination had been worth it. Tannery Falls is a nice excursion that could be made even better with a dip in the pools. Bring your swimsuits in summer!
For more walking (and) fun, check out Restless Jo.
Have you gone on a hike recently? Are there many trails near your home town? Has the weather been pleasant enough to do outdoor activities where you live?
Discover more from Roaming About
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
August 15, 2016 at 15:38
Looks like a great walk!
August 15, 2016 at 17:30
I’d do it again, if there weren’t so many other trails in this area! 🙂
August 15, 2016 at 15:43
It didn’t quite go to plan, Liesbet, but you got in a good hike. We had a lovely riverside walk this morning, and constant sunshine. Woohoo! 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
August 15, 2016 at 17:32
Nice! Speaking of riverside walks, we had one of those yesterday afternoon. In the heatwave that has been happening in New England (which we didn’t really feel up high in the hills), Jenny loved the cooler temperatures surrounding the river and even went in up to her belly. For a Labrador mix, she does not usually like the water. 🙂
August 15, 2016 at 16:12
Looks like a great walk – I love waterfalls. Hastings prefers any water to his own home water – rain water in the dinghy, my fresh iced water – ditch water – toilet water. Tap water just doesn’t taste like adventure!
August 15, 2016 at 17:34
Haha! Maybe that’s the reason. Or, dogs like the extra bit of “extraterrestrial” flavor… 🙂 Our own dogs were more picky with water and only liked lake and tap water. Except for that one time, when Darwin tried to lick the ocean. It stayed with that one time…
August 16, 2016 at 18:15
Wow look at that rock! I love how you holding it up gives it all perspective. Looks like a wonderful place to explore. As to the no alcohol at a festival well that is rather unusual I think. 🙂
August 17, 2016 at 11:14
I think it is unusual as well (the rock and the no alcohol), but apparently, they need a special license at festivals (to sell alcohol, but probably also to have giants deliver rocks) and that was quite pricey for this small event, so the organizers whispered to us to bring our own, because “that’s what everyone does…” 🙂
August 21, 2016 at 22:26
It may not have gone according to plan but it looks like it was a delightful day anyhow. Glad that you had the strength to hold up that rock after imbibing at your BYOB music festival
August 22, 2016 at 13:56
You know, Lisa, I could actually hold that rock up with two fingers. But, since that would look too macho, I pretended to use both hands. 🙂 We went to the Heath Fair over the weekend and can you believe that they didn’t sell alcohol there either? Massachusetts…. tststs…
August 22, 2016 at 11:05
Gorgeous territory. Very nice display of your strength with that rock pose 😉
August 22, 2016 at 13:57
Thanks, Susan. I think we are all much stronger (inside) than we tend to believe… 🙂
November 22, 2023 at 19:44
Liesbet,
I am a waterfall hunter from Massachusetts and have attempted to reach Tannery Falls via that non maintained road. We gave up at the bridge and turned around having no idea how close we were! I loved your pictures and it has inspired me to try again using the route that you found. Thanks for sharing your trips and inspiring us.
November 24, 2023 at 16:09
Hi Elizabeth,
I don’t think I’ve ever heard the term “waterfall hunter!” How cool you stumbled across my blog. I hope you’ll keep following our (global) adventures. South America has a lot of waterfalls! 🙂 If you’re curious, I think you’ll find many photos by typing “waterfall” in the search field of my website.
Andy I hope you’ll be able to reach Tannery Falls on a future attempt. Happy hunting!