May 31, 2020 – Glendale Falls – Massachusetts

Today Wilma and I Adventured to Glendale Falls in Middlefield, Massachusetts.  Glendale Falls in sourced by the Glendale Brook and is considered one of the longest waterfalls in Massachusetts.  The trail to Glendale Falls is only about a quarter of a mile in length.  The Property is managed by the Trustees of Reservations.

We had a water-rushing Adventure to Glendale Falls.  This was a waterfall I had been curious about for some time so was pleased to fit it in to today’s Adventures!  We located the Falls on a long country road and were disappointed to find it so crowded.  However we were able to obtain the last spot and headed down the trail.  We were quickly distracted by some rocks and what appeared to be the top of the Falls so headed off the trail to explore.   There were some small cascades and a beautiful view although the complete Falls was not yet in sight.  I had a brief flash of several on my White Mountain view’s but definitely not quite as spectacular.

We then headed back to the trail.  The trail was short but somewhat steep at locations. Certain spots actually had steps which helped with balance. We appreciated many boulders, some unusual in shape.  Upon arrival to the bottom we found it very crowded, and took some time trying to navigate our route while adhering to social distancing. We soon found some perfect rocks to enjoy the sounds of rushing water.  The Falls was a bit difficult to capture on camera as it was cascades from far above, however I did my best to capture this beautiful Falls.

We were quite upset to have a little incident when a dog jumped the Brook and bounded high up to the rocks we were standing on and charged Wilma.  I was so disappointed to see the lack of quick response from the owners let alone letting this incident occur in an on-leash location (maybe due to COVID but clearly listed as a rule).  However they eventually made their way to us to retrieve their dog and apologized continually. However this dampened the mood for a bit before we regrouped.  I then decided not to explore farther down the brook as they had headed in that direction but yet was thankful we had seen the complete Falls.

We headed back up the trail taking numerous opportunities to head to various rocky parts of the cascades.  We definitely had to be careful watching our step especially with rock jumping Wilma at the wheel (haha).  Upon arrival at the top we found an area busy with visitors, perfect for dipping.  We actually chatted with several guests and Wilma was quite thrilled to get some belly rubs and lots of attention.  One guest actually mentioned that she had seen the incident with the dog and was impressed at how I handled it.  This made me feel a bit better as everything happened so fast, and although I was not at all happy I did not say a negative word to the owners.  As I think about it Wilma recovered quite quickly it was more myself that was rattled, and frustrated.  I debated mentioning this incident but it did play a big impact in the day.  However, we loved finding a new waterfall, quite unique to the other ones we have located in Massachusetts.  Beautiful rocks, cascades, and a view down the Falls.  So glad we could visit Glendale Falls today (Rating:  4).