Giant’s Rib Escarpment Education Network’s Waterfall of the Month for March 2016 is Lower DeCew Falls.
Lower DeCew Falls, also spelled as Lower Decew Falls, is located on Beaverdams Creek in St. Catharines. It is considered a Plunge Cascade type waterfall with a height of approximately 8 m and a crest width of approximately 6 m. It has year round flow and thus can be visited anytime. Its coordinates are N 43° 6.617‘ W 79° 15.816′.
The attached photo shows Lower DeCew in March.
Lower DeCew Falls is located downstream of the more famous DeCew Falls (Upper DeCew Falls), but is less known, less visited and is extremely difficult to visit. It however is located in a completely natural setting and thus worth the visit, but only for the extreme hiker.
To visit Lower DeCew Falls, take Hwy 406 exit off the QEW, then exit at St. David’s Rd. and go right. In a short distance turn left onto Merrittville Highway, then right onto DeCew Rd. Follow this for 1.8 km to the Morningstar Mills parking lot on the right side. From the parking lot, walk past the old Morningstar Mill to the trail beyond the fence. Turn left and follow this trail downstream for a few hundred metres until you “hear” the lower falls. There may be a safe point at which you can lower yourself down into the gorge, such as a rope. However you do have to climb back up, which may be equally difficult. The second way to reach Lower DeCew Falls is to follow the roadway past the parking lot (by walking as there is no other place to park) for approximately one kilometer to where the roadway crosses the creek. Then follow the creek back towards the parking lot to reach the base of Lower DeCew Falls. For most people however, just enjoy this picture of Lower DeCew Falls!
By Joseph Hollick
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