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River

Otonabee River

Class

Cascade

Size

Medium

Visitability

Good

Accessibility

Free

Activity

Moderate

Walk Time

2min

Trail

Moderate

Gorge Access

Moderate

Other Trails

Some

County

Peterborough

From Peterborough, go east on Hwy 7 to Hwy 134. Turn north on Hwy 134 and follow the road to Hwy 28. Turn north (right) on Hwy 28 and follow this road for 15 km to Burleigh Falls. Just before the bridge over the water, turn right on to Old Burleigh Rd, and park on the side of the road. Please respect the private property on the south side of the road, and don't block their driveways! Use one of the short paths on the north side of the road to access the bedrock along the river banks. A small waterfall is located on Perry Creek on the west side of Hwy 28, about 0.8 km north of Burleigh Falls.

If this section of the road is full with parked cars, proceed along the gravel road for about 300m - you will curve around to the right, leaving the waterside for a moment. A small parking lot is located on the left side of the road at a small bay in Clear lake. You can walk back to Hwy 28 through the bush and along the water's edge.

Settlement

Burleigh Falls

NTS Map

31 D/9

Easting

722190

Northing

4937459

UTM Zone

To some, Burleigh Falls isn't really much of a waterfall. Other than a few swift chutes and one low falls, this is really a long stretch of rapids. Still, Burleigh Falls provides a lot of oppourtunity for exploring, and is a great spot to visit! Water from Lower Buckhorn Lake drains to Stony Lake through a short river about 100 meters in width. Flowing over a broad expanse of bedrock, the river eventually breaks into several different small falls and chutes that wind around a half dozen islands at the lower reaches of the river. The falls are no more than 2 metres in elevation, but can be quite powerful where the river constricts to just a few meters in width. During lower flows children may be seen swimming safely in the small plunge pool at the base of the falls.

The best way to explore the falls is by walking along the exposed bedrock along the south shore of the river. When flows are low during summer, its possible to wade across the river to the small rock islands without needing a bathing suit. Bare rock ridges, white pines and rushing water combine to make several excellent picnic spots on these islands. It isn't uncommon to see a house boat or two anchored just offshore. Just be sure to watch out for the poison ivy though, which is widely distributed on the islands, as well as on shore. A rough network of rocky trails leads along the right bank of the river for several hundred meters, and you will probably see a local or two casting from their favourite fishing spot.

The bedrock is gneiss and granite migmatite: two metamorphic rocks over a billion years old that formed deep in the earth's crust during a period of mountain building. If you look closely you should be able to see veins of minerals cutting across the bedock. No more than a few tens of centimetres wide, the veins are usually composed of white quartz minerals which intruded into cracks in the existing bedrock. Where the cracks were filled with less-resistant minerals, long narrow grooves have been cut into the bedrock. These grooves are well exposed on the shore at low water. The rocks at Burleigh Falls have been well weathered dull by the elements, but you can get a better look at their composition by examining the fresh road cuts along Hwy 28 just one kilometre to the north.

From Peterborough, go east on Hwy 7 to Hwy 134. Turn north on Hwy 134 and follow the road to Hwy 28. Turn north (right) on Hwy 28 and follow this road for 15 km to Burleigh Falls. Just before the bridge over the water, turn right on to Old Burleigh Rd, and park on the side of the road. Please respect the private property on the south side of the road. Use one of the short paths on the north side of the road to access the bedrock along the river banks. A small waterfall is located on Perry Creek on the west side of Hwy 28, about 0.8 km north of Burleigh Falls.