If you travel, you should see them roar up close or from afar. Some waterfalls are famous because of how they look from afar: a rare shade of violet that looks like a wall of tears, or streams of milk that flow down the mountainside.
While some of the most beautiful waterfalls are tall, not all of them are the most beautiful. For example, the Plitvice Waterfalls are made up of sixteen lakes that flow together to form a series of waterfalls and cliffs. People who want to go hiking don’t need years of experience or to be very good at it. They don’t even need a lot of practice.
It’s time to see the world; plan your next trip around one of these waterfalls.
Hiking trails With Waterfalls
1. Waterfall Hiking in Montezuma, Costa Rica
There are a lot of adventurous things to do in Montezuma, a small town on the western peninsula of Costa Rica. It’s known for its waterfall hikes and friendly monkeys. This place has trails, cliff jumps, and beautiful scenery that make for great photos. It takes you over several high-rise bridges to find a zip line tour.
2. Kilt Rock Waterfall, Scotland
From the trail, Kilt Rock and the Mealt waterfall can be seen. In this shape, Kilt Rock looks like an old-fashioned kilt. Mealt Falls is named after Loch Mealt, the lake into which they flow. Witness the spectacular waterfall as it plunges 170 feet into the sea.
3. Ouzel Falls Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
Copeland Falls and Calypso Cascades are just two of them. This is loud, so you’ll hear it before you see it. Keep an eye out for the ouzel, the bird that is named for the falls. It dives into the water below the falls.
4. Yosemite Grand Traverse, California
Hiking the Yosemite Grand Traverse gives you a chance to see some of Sierra Nevada’s tallest peaks, which can reach as high as 12,000 feet. This hike goes through Yosemite National Park and the Ansel Wilderness as it goes across the Sierra Nevada range. You’ll see the Merced River, which is the lifeblood of the Yosemite Valley. The trail follows the river’s headwaters past several waterfalls, and you’ll also see a lot of wildlife.
5. Angel Falls, Venezuela
It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the most popular things to do in Venezuela for people who want to see it. Angel Falls is the world’s tallest waterfall, with a height of 3,230 feet and a vertical drop of 2,647 feet. A river is the only way you can get there from June to December. The river is deep enough for boats to go through. Besides that, you’ll have to walk through the jungle for about five hours.
6. Long Range Traverse, Newfoundland, Canada
In the backcountry, there is a trail called the Long Range Traverse that is not marked or marked at all. It starts at Western Brook Pond and ends at Gros Morne Mountain, which is a good reason to go to Canada. There are a lot of things that make Gros Morne a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Recent glacial activity has created some beautiful places, like coastal lowlands, alpine plateaus, fjords, glacial valleys, sheer cliffs, waterfalls, and a lot of beautiful lakes.
7. Mount Kailash, Tibet
According to SnowLion Tours, trekking around sacred Mt. Kailash means walking on beautiful rocky cliffs and standing in front of beautiful waterfalls. Zhangmu, which is in the Matsang Tsangpo Gorge, is where most trips start. It’s surrounded by beautiful waterfalls on both sides.
8. Kalalau Trail, Hawaii
The 11-mile Kalalau Trail is the only way to get to Kauai’s Na Pali Coast, as well as to hidden beaches and waterfalls along the way. In places, the trail is steep and eroded. It goes through five different valleys and is hard to walk on at certain points. In English, “fluted ridges” are what they’re called when they’re covered in vegetation. You’ll walk through a lush jungle and past beautiful waterfalls.
9. Laugavegurinn, Iceland
Among more adventurous hikers, the 50-mile Laugavegurinn Trail is likely to be the one they choose. They will see some of the most remote, wild, and beautiful places on the planet. There are spectacular waterfalls, glaciers, and huge volcanoes that hikers will see on their way. One of them, Eyjafjallajökull, erupted in 2010, shutting down air traffic between the US and Europe for a short time. You can also hike another 15 miles to the famous Skogafoss waterfall.
10. Fitz Roy Trek, Patagonia, Argentina
Hikers who want to see one of the many big waterfalls in the area should go on easy walks with little elevation gain. In most cases, they live in a lush forest of lenga trees. You can take a private tour so that the guides can take you to a secret waterfall that looks out over Cerro Chalten or Mount Fitz Roy and has a lot of water.
11. Iguazu Falls, Brazil and Argentina
Because its name means “great water,” Iguazu Falls is a waterfall that is one of the largest in the world. It also has a legend, like many other waterfalls. Deities are said to have been getting ready to marry a beautiful woman when she left him for a human. An angry deity cut the river while the lovers were trying to get away in a canoe. This caused a waterfall that killed them both.
12. Wallaman Falls, Australia
This is the highest single-drop waterfall in Australia that stays open all the time. Because it is a part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, it has a lot of old, rare, and endangered plants and animals.
13. Plitvice Waterfalls, Croatia
A park called Plitvice Lakes National Park was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. It is known for having sixteen lakes that are on different levels and connected by waterfalls. For a long time, water has flowed over limestone and chalk, forming natural dams that have led to some of the most beautiful lakes, caves, and waterfalls in the world.
14. Multnomah Falls, Oregon
This amazing, 611-foot-tall building is about 30 minutes south of Portland. If you visit Multnomah Falls in the summer, you won’t see it because the water doesn’t freeze. Take a look from the Benson Bridge for a bird’s-eye view of the top tier’s full 542-foot height and a spine-tingling view of the second tier’s 69-foot drop from the top.
15. Victoria Falls, Zambia, and Zimbabwe
In terms of width, Victoria Falls is the world’s biggest sheet of water. It’s 5,604 feet wide, and 354 feet high. Miles of water spray can be seen when it rains. From Victoria Falls to about 17 miles downstream, the trip is a mix of huge flows, 80-degree water, and big drops, followed by a mile of calm water.
Final thoughts
Hiking is a great way to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life, enjoy the company of nature, and stay healthy. If you know where to go, it can also be a fantastic source for spectacular photographs or just amazing memories that will “last” a lifetime.
