Vermillion Falls is located in downtown Hastings Minnesota. This is an urban waterfall, and apparently was once a working waterfall. A large factory is located right next to the falls. The falls is located in Vermillion Falls Park, which is located on 26th Street just off of Vermillion St (aka US 61). It is short walk from the parking area to the overlook for the falls. The views are somewhat obstructed.

A paved walking/biking trail follows the river in both directions. If you follow this trail downstream you will find places where people have climbed down into the gorge. There are no maintained trails in the gorge, and the going is a bit tricky in places, but you can work your way back up to the falls.

I have seen nice pictures of the falls from the opposite side of the river. I am not sure if this area is open to the public, or exactly how one gets there.

There is another Vermillion Falls located in Minnesota far to the north near Crane Lake. The northern Vermillion Falls is smaller, perhaps being better described as a rapids, but much, much wilder. I have not been able to find any photos of this waterfall, but descriptions say it is 25' high and part of a series of drops and rapids on the river. The other Vermillion Falls is also known as High Falls, or Upper Gorge Falls.

Nearby Falls

There are a fair number of waterfalls in this area. Willow Falls is 30 miles to the north, and Cascade Falls is another 25 miles beyond that. Minnehaha Falls is 30 miles to the northeast. All of these falls are the result of smaller rivers or creeks falling into the gorges of the much larger Mississippi and St. Croix Rivers. Hidden Falls in Nerstrand Big Woods State Park is 40 miles to the southwest.

Photo Gallery

This page has been accessed 172235 times.
Last Modified: Saturday, 19-Sep-2009 14:13:04 MDT.