Chedoke Falls | TorontoHiking Ontario Waterfalls

Chedoke Falls - Photo by Peter Sproule (sproulephoto.ca)

Chedoke Falls (Rating=A) is a large ribbon plunge urban waterfall with a crest width of 9 m where the Chedoke Creek plunges 18 m over the Niagara Escarpment into a plunge pool below.
Lower Chedoke Falls is an irregular curtain waterfall found a few hundred metres north of the main Chedoke Falls. It is 6 m in height and 11 m wide.

LOCATION:	Chedoke Falls is located in the west end of Hamilton, Ontario below a residential area but above a golf course below the gorge. Click on the Road Map button below for a Google road map and driving directions. The Falls Locator button shows a map of other waterfalls in the area.
ACCESS:	Access to these waterfalls is not easy and is not wheelchair accessible. You can just see the falls from Scenic Drive but the view is poor. Click on the Trail Map button below for area walking trails.

NEARBY FALLS	LAT	LONG	TYPE	H (m)	W (m)	SOURCE	FACING
Chedoke Falls	N43.24193	W79.90041	ribbon plunge	18	9	Red Hill Creek	NE
Lower Chedoke Falls	N43.24395	W79.90029	curtain plunge	6	11	Red Hill Creek	N
Tiffany Falls	N43.23797	W79.95836	steep cascade	19	8	Tiffany Creek	N
Sherman Falls	N43.23814	W79.97280	terraced ribbon	17	8	Ancaster Creek	N
Albion Falls	N43.20043	W79.81986	complex cascade	20	10	Red Hill Creek	NE

Trail Map	Road Map	Falls Locator

ToHi WATERFALL RATINGS

Overall Rating: Chedoke Falls = A (Upper); A (Lower)

Upper Falls
Waterflow: A -year round flow
Falls Size: A - > 15 m
Aesthetics: B -very difficult to view the main falls; very large deep gorge; a large concrete channel retaining wall above the falls is unsightly

Lower Falls
Waterflow: A -year round flow
Falls Size: B - > 15 m
Aesthetics: A - scenic setting with the falls only marred by a few large rock slabs at the crest

THE CHEDOKE FALLS AREA:

chedoke-lower-falls Lower Chedoke FallsChedoke Falls takes it's name from Chedoke Creek that runs through this area. It seems the name comes from a corruption of the words "seven" and "oaks" which to the native Indians sounded like "chedoke." The waterfalls is somewhat hidden and not easy to find. From Scenic Drive, above the crest of the waterfalls, you can see very little of the falls. The creek actually flows through a culvert and emerges from below a large concrete retaining wall that protects the road from erosion and much of the creek is diverted below ground in concrete piping. Unfortunately this distracts from the appearance of the waterfall. The plunge pool below the falls can be a beautiful turquoise colour and the gorge walls show some interesting colours but the water is polluted. The steeply-inclined valley shows some bright red clay soils and an abundance of mature maple trees.

From the falls, the creek is routed under the Radial Trail and travels through a thin stretch of forest that separates the Chedoke Golf Course from the nearby houses. At Glenside Avenue (approximately 500 m from the Radial Trail), the creek is routed underground. It is channeled through a concrete trough along the side of Highway 403 and empties into Cootes Paradise at Princess Point Park.

CHEDOKE FALLS AREA WALKING TRAILS:

Bruce Trail, Chedoke Radial Trail, Iroquoia Heights Side Trail, Scenic Drive Side Trail. For a map of area trails, click on the Trail Map icon above.

Lower Chedoke falls is located on the east branch of Chedoke Creek. This can be found at the east end of the Chedoke Golf Course where you can pick up the Radial Trail (a gravel road suitable for pedestrian and bicyclists; no motor vehicles allowed) heading towards the east ravine. This trail is a portion of the Bruce Trail which includes a lookout towards Lower Chedoke Falls. It should be noted that this lookout is some distance from the falls and it is challenging to get any closer.

FOR THE ADVENTUROUS ONLY:

From the bottom of the escarpment, the falls can be accessed from the Chedoke Civic Golf Course. From the golf course parking lot, follow the Chedoke Radial Trail (Bruce Trail) to the most easterly ravine on the far east side of the golf course. Now you need to follow this ravine upstream for several hundred metres. There is no trail and often you will need rubber boots to keep your feet dry. The route along the creek bed is extremely difficult, challenging and dangerous. You will pass both Lower Chedoke Falls and another falls (Denlow Falls) on the way to Chedoke Falls. Denlow Falls is a ribbon cascade with a height of 19 m and a variable width of about 6 m but it's really just a drainage pipe that discharges its' flow over the gorge.

You can also park on Hillcrest Avenue near Dundurn St where a short trail heads behind some houses on Hillcrest and connects to the Chedoke Radial Trail. Turn right on the trail and follow the white blazes of the Bruce Trail. Leave the Radial Trail and carefully make your way up the base of the valley towards the falls.