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River

Mississippi River

Class

Cascade

Size

Medium

Visitability

Average

Accessibility

Free

Activity

Busy

Walk Time

3min

Trail

Moderate

Gorge Access

Moderate

Other Trails

town streets

County

Lanark

From Ottawa, go west on Hwy 417 to Hwy 7, and continue west towards Carleton Place. A few kilometres before Carleton Place, turn right on to Lanark County Rd # 17. Drive north to Lanark # 49 (March St), and turn left. Follow this road into town and cross over the Mississippi River. Park in the parking lot for Metcalfe Park, which is on the right side of the road, about 200 m past the bridge.

Settlement

Almonte

NTS Map

31 F/1

Easting

405891

Northing

5008716

UTM Zone

Of the four (or more?) waterfalls in Almonte, this is the only one that provides even the slightest opportunity for exploration on foot. The Mississippi River flows through town and splits into two channels. The west channel spills first over the upper falls, located about 100 m upstream of the lower falls. The east channel spills over Mill Falls and Grand Falls. Unfortunately, both Mill Falls and Grand Falls are on private property, while Upper Almonte Falls is surrounded by concrete walls and is generally only safely viewed from the bridge.

Downstream of the bridge, the lower waterfall is about 50 m wide, and 4 m in height. Below the falls, the river widens to about 100 metres wide and is choked with limestone blocks, stretching for a distance of about 200 metres before spilling into a more docile reach of the river.

To really explore Lower Almonte Falls, there is a good chance that you'll have to get your feet wet. From the parking lot, walk across the grass field towards the river. Walk through the woods, and over the limestone boulders. As you emerge from the forest, you'll be right in front of the falls. Note however, that you'll need to carefully pick your way over the limestone blocks in the river bed in order to get out in front of the falls. This entire area floods during periods of high flow and is impassable on foot. Thus, you may wish to avoid spring visits unless you are content to view this from the bridge.

This waterfall is covered in more detail in the print version of "Waterfalls of Ontario."