Lake Ontario is the smallest of the Great Lakes, but it still is a Great Lake, with a surface area of over 7000 square miles. The shores of Ontario are more developed than those of Lake Huron and Lake Superior, but a lot of natural beauty still remains. The Lake Ontario Watershed includes a good chunk of Southern Ontario and western New York. Many of the waterfalls listed below are a considerable distance from the shores of Ontario, but all the water ends up there eventually.

If you were to take a waterfall tour around Lake Ontario you might as well start at Niagara Falls. This is one of the most impressive waterfalls in the world, and is easily the most impressive waterfall along the shores of Lake Ontario. It is 15 miles from the Lake, which makes it one of the falls closest to the shores.

If you were to head west you will encounter many of the other waterfalls of the Niagara Escarpment. You will pass the upper and lower Decew Falls, upper and lower Balls Falls, Rockway Falls and Beamers Falls.

Further west is Hamilton where there are a large number of waterfalls, such as Webster Falls, Tews Falls, Borer's Falls, Albion Falls, Felker Falls and the Devil's Punchbowl Falls.

Heading north towards Toronto you will pass Hilton Falls near Milton. To the northwest you can find Cataract Falls in the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park.

Heading east will take you along Lake Ontario's northern shore, which is lacking in waterfalls. There are a few, most of which are far from the shores of the lake. The falls tend to be small, or to have been compromised by dams. The Trent-Severn Waterway connects Lake Ontario to Lake Huron, and along it you can find Fenelon Falls, Burleigh Falls, Healey Falls and Ranney Falls. All of these falls are easy to reach, but either have dams on them or are not particularly high. The High Falls of Eels Creek is one of the few sizable wild waterfalls in this area. It can be reached by a one hour hike.

Farther east you can find Napanee Falls, Yarker Falls, both of which are low falls, and Kingston Mill Falls on the Cataraqui River, which empties into the north-eastern tip of Lake Ontario.

In New York more waterfalls can be found, although many of them are a considerable distance from the lake. There are some falls in the western Adirondacks, but most of the waterfalls are much farther south in the Finger Lakes region. Chittenango Falls is just south of Syracuse. To the east you will find Montville Falls and Fillmore Glen State Park.

Ithaca is blessed with waterfalls. It is 80 miles from Lake Ontario, and all of its waterfalls flow towards Lake Cayuga, which drains into Lake Onatario. Here you will find Ithaca Falls, Forest Falls, and Triphammer Falls in Falls Creek Gorge, and the falls of Cascadilla Gorge, and others such as Lick Brook Gully and Ludlowville Falls.

There are a large number of state parks in the Ithaca area that feature waterfalls. These include Buttermilk Falls State Park, Taughannock Falls State Park, and Robert H. Treman State Park where you will find Lucifer Falls and the Lower Enfield Falls.

Farther west you will find Watkins Glen. There are many waterfalls in this area, including Hector Falls, She-qa-ga Falls, Excelsior Glen, and Eagles Nest Falls.

Farther to the west is Stony Brook State Park with its three waterfalls. In between you can find Sugar Creek Glen, Grimes Glen, Tannery Creek Falls, Conklin Gully and others.

Farther west you find the Genesee river and its many waterfalls. The source of the Genesee is in Pennsylvania and it flows north into Lake Ontario. Along the way it carves out the "Grand Canyon of the East" in Letchworth State Park with its three major waterfalls and several minor ones.

Just south of Letchworth State Park you will find Wiscoy Falls. North and east of the park Warsaw Falls and the Cascades of Attica can be found. All three of these falls are fairly wild, having neither official trails nor viewing areas.

Farther north in Rochester, less than 10 miles from Lake Ontario, the Genesee tumbles over the High Falls, Middle Falls, and Lower Falls. The Niagara and Onandago escarpments are responsible for a line of waterfalls can be found between Rochester and Niagara.

West of Rochester you can find Clarendon Falls, Medina Falls and Akron Falls each in their respective town. Glen Falls is in Williamsville, just outside of Buffalo, and only 10 miles east of Niagara Falls. The Niagara and Onondaga Escarpments are responsible for these falls.

All of the other great lakes empty into Lake Ontario, so technically the Ontario watershed also includes the waterfalls of Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior.

This map shows some of the significant waterfalls around Lake Ontario.

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Last Modified: Tuesday, 04-Jul-2017 20:18:38 MDT.