Recently a friend and I visited Stone Falls in Dansville.
I'm disappointed to say that the falls are not what they
used to be. I visited them 2 years ago and they were as
magnificent as your photos with a wide flat cliff spreading
the water out 15 feet wide or more. That summer yielded
a lot of rain so the river was wide and the current fast,
producing a huge roar from the falls.
It appears that these falls were created by a dam that
has since been removed. Due to the drought conditions this
year, we were able to see that the lower ten feet of the
falls are natural, while the remaining 18 feet were created
by a dam made of concrete. If you look at your photos you
can see the 10 foot of natural falls directly in front
of the hiker. Now half of the dam has been removed leaving
only the columns which used to create that symmetrical cascade
on either side of the falls. I would estimate that this
has caused the height of the falls to be shortened by 10-12
feet. I doubt that you would vote these the most symmetrical
falls in your area anymore.
We still had a wonderful time, and beacuse of the low
rainfall this year, were able to have a picnic lunch on
the creek bed near the falls. Perhaps we will try the Pocamoonshine
Falls next time. Thank you for creating the website.
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