Hidden Otago

School Creek Falls

This beautiful man made 20 meter cascading waterfall was created when they diverted Ross Creek to construct the reservoir. See also the Ross Creek page for hiking trails.

Directions

Park up at any one of the many parking lots to Ross Creek and start walking. From the Glen Leith lot, you can climb down to the river and try to cross with out getting your feet wet. There is an easy trail to follow, you cant miss it. From the lower parking lot on Burma Rd, just hike down the trail to the waterfall. About 5 minutes walk from both sides.

Other adventures in close proximity

Helpful links

> Hiking Project
> Google maps

By Hidden Otago

Boundless fun

School Creek Falls is one of the many stopping points on our usual family hikes around the Ross Creek Reservoir, which is also the oldest still used reservoir in New Zealand. This story is the first time we went as a family.

The air was brisk, it was beanie weather for sure. The entire forest was a little damp as usual. We started off at the low end of the Reserve. Hiked up through the beautiful canyon of ferns and high cliffs. Just as you notice all the pipes crossing over the river, you soon will see the track on the other side. Time for the climb down. It's really quite easy, Unless your pregnant ( like my wife was at the time ). So to get across the river I built a bridge. Cypress was enjoying this, throwing rocks to help me out. Who doesn't like a good splash with cold water?

Basically as soon as you make it over the river, you can almost see the waterfall. Just takes a minute to walk there. Such a beautiful spot. After that, we let Cypress choose the path home. 3 hours later we finally made it. Toddler time for sure.

- Stu