Lower Falls

The waterfall sits near the lower end of the marked Old Man’s Cave walk. You can see it from the exit overlook above or take the Grandma Gatewood Trail down to the creek; stone steps connect the levels. The walk is rated moderate, and the climb out from the lower exit is steep and uneven. Follow the one-way signs and stay on the marked trail. Winter ice is common on these gorge paths. The Old Man’s Cave parking area and visitor center are the useful starting point; public restrooms, displays and a gift shop are up there, not beside the falls.

The fall’s curved lip and shaded pool are its defining view. For a photo, get to the lower path and include the overhang and pool under the cascade; the overlook above gives you more of the gorge but a more distant view. Water volume changes with rainfall, and hot, dry spells can leave only a trickle. Go early if you want more room around the falls; popular days can bring crowds into the narrow gorge.

The gorge cuts through Black Hand Sandstone, laid down more than 350 million years ago and shaped by uplift and stream erosion. Glacial runoff helped bring northern plants into these ravines; hemlocks, Canada yew, and yellow and black birch are among the species associated with the park’s cool gorge habitat.

Old Man’s Cave takes its name from Richard Rowe, a 19th-century hermit who lived in a large recess cave farther up the gorge. The route to Lower Falls follows part of the Grandma Gatewood Trail. Emma “Grandma” Gatewood became the first woman to hike the Appalachian Trail in 1955, later helped dedicate the first Buckeye Trail section, and joined Hocking Hills winter hikes for several years. That history belongs to the trail, not the waterfall itself.