Falls Without Flaws

Situated unexpectedly within one of New Jersey’s most urban and industrial settings, the Great Falls of the Passaic River or Paterson’s Great Falls or, more colloquially, the Paterson Falls are an historic and unique landmark to visit and appreciate.

Designated as a National Historic Landmark District, the Falls are 77 feet high, one of the largest in the nation and the second-largest east of the Mississippi.

Like the Delaware Water Gap, the Falls were the site of Dutch settlements in the 17th Century, in addition to those of the Leni Lenape Indians.

The engineering of canals from the Falls to power water mills in the town of Paterson was conceived and overseen by founding father and Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton.

Later a wooden dam was installed in the employment of a paper mill. Today it boasts a hydroelectric plant generating electricity from the Fall’s flowing waters. As a testament to such aesthetic and technical marvels, over a hundred-thousand tourists visit the Great Falls of Paterson every year.

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Christopher Robinson

Truly 'Gap-tivating'

Between New Jersey and Pennsylvania one will find 70,000 acres of valley along the Delaware River between the low mountains of the Appalachians that attract hikers, boaters, rock climbers, rafters and campers among many others.

Along the Appalachian Trail lies the Delaware Water Gap, in essence, the place where the Delaware cuts between the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania and the Kittatinny Ridge of New Jersey.

The resulting topography includes lakes, ponds, springs, ravines, overlooks, glens and forests which eventually helped to designate the Water Gap as a national recreation area of the East Coast.

The ubiquitous footprint of history is adorned in the Water Gap’s countless trails. One such example is the remains of 17th Century Dutch mines and villages from the French and Indian War which stand on its New Jersey side.

The region boomed as a resort town by the beginning of the 20th Century. Today vacationers still venture to the destination for its recreational activities and spectacular sight-seeing.

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Christopher Robinson