17/03/2025
A pure example of what careless social media content can cause. I remember visiting this spot for the first time years ago. It’s pure beauty & raw power called me in, amazed me and inspired me. Though with the onset of the pandemic and a ramp up in social media postings sharing locations like these as “must visit” swimming holes, this place was changed forever. The Mass DCR closed its parking lot for the falls shortly after this place gained notoriety. In the years to come, the articles, reels, TikTok’s and other social posts flooded in, putting a spotlight on a relatively rural natural area. With this it brought increased foot and vehicle traffic, people attempting to swim in the quite dangerous pool at the base of the falls & also many with a lack of respect of nature, both its’ pure power and our responsibility to take care of it & leave no trace.
I truly haven’t been back to this location in years until just this weekend. I could not help but be frustrated in the lack of respect people have. Both in wilfully disobeying the barrier put in place by the state parks, but also for overall not practicing leave no trace principles over time. The fact that these changes were even needed in the first place irritates me to my core.
You can call me selfish or a gatekeeper by holding locations near and dear to my heart. It’s not that I don’t trust the people that I connect with, it’s that you never know how far things will go. I do not want to be responsible for the next big social media casualty.
That being said, I am glad the State of NY & Commonwealth have been working together to make this beauty more accessible with guardrails, I just wish people would respect those guardrails especially since it’s disrespectful behaviour that changed this place at the get go.
If you’ve read this far - thank you. I urge you to refresh on the leave no trace principles. I’m outspoken on this often because I’ve witnessed the destruction a few simple social posts can cause. Not only here, but many places.
