As a New England native, I know I’m a little biased, but truly – autumn in New England is stunning. People travel from all over the world to enjoy the vibrant trees, delicious foods and festive farms. One of the best ways to get the full experience is to throw on your boots and take a hike. With sweeping views, vivid colors and crisp, fresh air, a day out in nature will leave you feeling refreshed and falling just a little more in love with the northeast.
This past weekend, we left the girls with my parents and headed out west to the Berkshires. For someone that has lived in Massachusetts for over twenty years, it’s actually amazing how little I know of this part of the state. We stayed at the Cottage at Five Corners, located in the northwest corner of Massachusetts in Williamstown. It’s a charming historic home with so much personality, a great location and all the amenities we needed.
There are hiking trails everywhere in the Berkshires, including routes associated with the Appalachian Trail. I personally like to choose hikes that lead somewhere, whether it’s to a beautiful lookout, unique statues and memorials, or waterfalls. So when I was researching for this trip and saw photos of the Cascades Trail, I knew that was the one I wanted to explore.
Parking is free at the Northern Berkshires YMCA and we just followed signs through an adorable neighborhood to the trailhead. Don’t park near the trailhead on the street – there are signs posted stating that you will be towed.
The trail was a gradual incline, mostly on an easy path but occasionally requiring walking over rocks or climbing down small, steep ledges. I wouldn’t recommend this trail for anyone with a stroller or unsure footing. A family was walking up when we were walking down and the grandma had a hard time crossing the water where you have to balance from rock to rock.
It’s a beautiful walk, about a mile each way, and follows along a small river that eventually leads to the waterfall. If you’re not in a rush, there are fallen trees to climb, large rocks to leap around and plenty of space to explore. It took us about an hour and half round trip, but we stayed for awhile at the falls and stopped throughout the walk to enjoy the views and take photos.
When we approached to the end of the trail and caught sight of the waterfall, we were all so wonderfully surprised! I’ve found a lot of waterfall hikes are really just small, unimpressive bouts of water streaming down a few rocks. But the Cascade Falls was beautiful! This year has been especially dry, so it wasn’t as full as I’ve seen in other hiker’s photos, but it still made for a magnificent scene. Since the river was low, there were more dry, sturdy rocks available for us to climb close to the falls without getting wet.
Mid to late October in the Berkshires was just past peek color but the leaves were still beautiful – more of a burnt orange with pops of yellow. This would be a spectacular hike in any season, but I’m glad that we came in the fall. I absolutely recommend this trail to anyone visiting the area looking for a gorgeous trek in the woods that won’t take up their entire day. There are a few other waterfalls located throughout Western Mass that I would love to visit on our next trip out that way (check out a great list here). I wanted to see the Natural Bridge State Park but it’s only open Memorial Day – Columbus Day. Oh well – next time! Can’t wait!
Do you have a favorite hike through New England, or a favorite spot to visit in the Berkshires? Comment below and let us know – we’re always looking to try something new!