Brooks Falls

We recently tacked a last-minute stay at Arrowhead Provincial Park onto a camping trip to Mew Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park that we’d been planning for months.

We were only able to secure a single night, as only a handful of campsites were even open at that time of year (end of April). Still, that one night gave us enough time to enjoy the whole reason for adding it onto the trip: waterfalling!

See, we’d been to High Falls on Muskoka several times before, pretty much any non-winter time we’ve camped at Arrowhead.

Leading up to that Mew Lake trip, though, we’d been seeing a lot of videos on social media about the flooding in the Muskoka region. The high lake and river levels made for some pretty wild flow levels at the waterfalls!

We ended up not only visiting High Falls, but two new-to-us falls: Bracebridge Falls, and Brooks Falls.

Before this trip, I hadn’t even heard of Brooks Falls. The photos we saw online were nice enough, just maybe nothing to write home about.

Still - given what we’d seen at High Falls the afternoon before - we decided to drive the ~25 minutes from the campground to check it out on the morning of our departure.

Hey, a bit of walking is always good on a drive day, right?

Anyway, we were UNPREPARED for how nice Brooks Falls was. Despite never having heard of it before, it’s probably among our top 10 favourite waterfalls in Ontario, already!

Let us tell you all about it!

The Basics:

Location Name: Brooks Falls Park
Address: 690 Deer Lake Rd, Emsdale, ON P0A 1J0
Website:
Price Free!
Reservations: N/A.

Logistics

Some basic information to help you plan your visit to Brooks Falls:

Registration and Check In

This is basically a public park / rest stop type situation. There’s no gatehouse, staff, registration, reservations, etc.

Just show up, park your car, and explore!

Parking

There is a single, large parking lot that probably holds 20-30 cars.

The parking spots aren’t marked, though, so capacity is definitely going to depend on how other people are parking!

As a note - when empty, at least - it’s big enough to park an RV in, and/or turn around in.

Washrooms

At the time of our visit in late April, 2026, we did not see any washrooms on site.

That said, we saw website reference to washrooms being an amenity at this park. Maybe they have seasonal portapotties brought in?

Maps and Signage

There's a nice big sign at the opening to the park to let you know where the park is. Other than that, there's nothing in the way of directional signage, and there’s no park map.

That said, it's pretty obvious where you go, and the park is mostly wide open and visible from the parking lot. You can even hear the falls from the parking lot, to help direct you - you’re not going to get lost at this park.

Basically, there is a single trail from the parking lot that quickly turns into a loop.

Taking the loop from the right (counter-clockwise), the first trail to the right takes you to the viewing area at the top of the falls.

At the top of the loop, there’s a viewing area that gives you the BEST view of the falls, pretty much straight-on. This is also the most accessible view of the falls, as it’s right on the side of that main gravel loop.

Just past that area, there’s a downhill trail on the right that takes you to some mini falls and a little set of rapids. Very nice!

Accessibility

Overall it's not a super accessible park, BUT wheelchair users will still be able to enjoy it.

First off, there’s no designated parking.

The trail loop that goes from the parking lot is probably wheelchair accessible, it’s wide, well packed gravel, and relatively flat. There are picnic tables on the lawn that aren’t too far off the path.

The trail that goes down to the viewing area at the top of the falls is not wheelchair accessible if it's wet, and is only partially wheelchair accessible if it's not.

You can get far enough down to get a bit of a view, but then you hit a bunch of roots and large rocks to navigate over, before it opens up to the main viewing area.

If you’re not using a wheelchair but are otherwise mobility impaired, you might be able to get down there - I’d recommend having a good sense of balance though.

I wouldn’t have a problem getting down there in a walking boot or when using a cane, your mileage may vary. It’s only a little over 200 metres from the parking lot, and a flat, easy walk most of the way.

The second viewing spot - on the side of the main loop - is the most accessible view in the park. You don’t have to go downhill to get a decent view.

That said, the more able-bodied you are, the better the view you’re able to get - I definitely recommend having a good sense of balance if you attempt to go down the first little incline though.

The trail that goes downhill to the lower falls isn’t one I would recommend it if you have any mobility issues.

It's steep, there are roots along the way, and -at the time we did it - there were some slippery leaves.

Pets

There's no signage about dogs, but there IS a poop bag dispenser at the top of the loop - so I would assume they’re welcome.

Obviously, pick up after your dog and properly dispose of it - there are garbage cans at the edge of the parking lot.

Park Store

There is no park store at Brooks Falls Park.

Visitor Centre

There is no Visitor Center at Brooks Falls Park.

Connectivity

We had good cell phone reception on Rogers wireless.

Picnic Area

Between the parking lot and the waterfalls - on the right side of the loop trail, and center of the loop - there are probably four three or four picnic tables, as well as some bench seating.

They’re few and far between, with plenty of lawn between each.

Brooks Falls Waterfall

The Brooks Falls Waterfall is a cascade style waterfall, located along the Magnetawan River.

From what we can tell, the main waterfall is about 15 feet tall and 40ish feet across, but there’s not a lot of information out there, and it’s REALLY hard to approximate it, the way the water was flowing!

At the time of our visit, there were violent rapids both above and below the falls, and another small waterfall slightly downstream of the main waterfall.

Judging by other photos we’ve seen of it, it’s definitely impacted by seasonality and/or rainfall.

Like most waterfalls, the best time to visit it is likely going to be in the spring - right after the big thaw - and after large amounts of rainfall.

There are a few different vantage points from which you can see the falls and surrounding area:

In Front of the Falls

Walking on the path from the parking lot, you’ll take either side of the loop to the top of that loop.

Just on the outside of that section of the trail is a bit of a flat, open area that looks straight out at the falls, from directly in front of it.

You can get a great view right from the side of the trail, or hike down a shortish, steep embankment to view it from below that area:

The Top of the Falls

When walking from the parking lot, stay to the right when the trail branches into a loop.

The first little offshoot trail on the right will take you directly to an area beside the top of the Brooks Falls waterfall. You also have a nice view of the rapids leading up to the falls.

Bottom of the Falls

When you’re continuing along the main trail loop counterclockwise, the next stop after the viewing area at the top of the loop, is a trail down to the right.

It’s short but fairly steep - at the time of our visit it was VERY slippery from wet leaves and a bit of ice, so be careful!

This trail takes you down to a flat area downstream, with a nice view of a second (much smaller) falls, and the rapids downstream of Brooks Falls.

Miscellaneous

Not a whole lot of random information to add, just:

1. There are a few memorials carved / bolted onto the rocks at the top of the falls:

2. Adjacent to the parking lot, there’s a native plant bee & butterfly garden.

We visited it too early in the spring to see anything but winter brush there, I bet it’ll be super cute in June!

Entertainment and Activity

Some information on the things you can see and do when visiting Brooks Falls Park:

Hiking

There aren't any long trails to be had here, so it’s more of a “walk a short distance to a scenic view” thing, than a “go for a hike” thing.

A short ways along the path from the parking lot, it splits into a loop. Going to the right will take you to a wide trail - the first you’ll come to - that takes you slightly downhill to the top of the falls.

It's just over 200 m from the parking lot, down the trail to the top of the falls, with most of it being wide, flat gravel road (as shown above).

Once you come back to the main loop and continue counter clockwise, there’s a separate trail off to the right, which goes down to an open area next to the river.

Walking from the parking lot, to the top of the falls, back to the loop, around the viewing area at the top of the loop, down the trail to the space alongside the river, and back up to parking only came to about 680 metres, total!

Biking

This isn't really a biking destination

Swimming

I wouldn't recommend this as a swimming spot, at least based on the conditions we saw in the spring.

Birding, Wildlife, and Nature

The birds were really quiet on the morning of our visit, we only saw one American tree sparrow.

We did hear another couple birds (Probably also sparrows), closer to the falls. The roar of the falls made it impossible to ID them, though.

Boating

I wouldn't recommend boating at this park.

Fishing

We didn’t see anyone fishing, there was no indication at the park that fishing was something you could do there, and a quick google search didn’t turn up anything.

So, there are probably better places to go fishing.

Educational & Cultural Opportunities

We didn’t see any educational signage or mention of any educational programming at Brooks Falls Park.

Niantic Games

There were two Niantic game feature spots (Pokestops / Ingress Portals, etc).

In terms of Pokemon Go specifically, it was a single pokestop at the opening to the parking lot, and a Dynamax location at the top of the loop.

Final Thoughts

I’d happened across information about Brooks Falls on someone else’s post about waterfalls in the area.

The photo of the waterfall was a little “meh”, but the post had commented that their photo really hadn’t done it justice... so we decided to give it a go.

... “Didn’t do it justice” was an understatement! We were ABSOLUTELY unprepared for how gorgeous this waterfall was!

I’d actually been surprised to hear it roaring all the way from the parking lot. That initial photo we’d seen definitely didn’t look like a loud one, if you know what I mean!

As a caveat, we DID visit Brooks Falls in spring time, and the whole area was having flooding issues ... so we probably saw it at a higher rate of flow than it normally is.

Either way, it was absolutely gorgeous!

Aside from the scope of the falls, we were also caught off guard by how easy access it was, with full, unobscured views of a really nice waterfall, only 200 metres or so from the car!

With it being only about 25 minutes from Arrowhead Provincial Park, we definitely recommend visiting. It’s also not that far from Screaming Heads, if you need another excuse to make the drive!

More Ontario Waterfall Posts

Looking to waterfalling in Ontario? Here are more Ontario Waterfalls to check out:

Albion Falls
Aguasabon Falls
Bridal Veil Falls, Manitoulin Island
Buttermilk Falls
Chippewa Falls
Devil's Punchbowl
Eugenia Falls
Falls Reserve Conservation Area
Felker's Falls
Gariepy Creek Falls
Healey Falls
High Falls [Muskoka]
Hogg's Falls
Indian Falls Conservation Area
Inglis Falls
Jones Falls
Kakabeka Falls
Kap-Kig-Iwan Provincial Park
Little Davis Falls
Little Falls Scenic Lookout, Atikokan
Mink Creek Falls
Onaping Falls
Oxtongue River-Ragged Falls Provincial Park
Provoking Falls
Rainbow Falls
Roy Wilson Suspension Bridge
Sand River Falls
Sauble Falls
Scenic High Falls
Sherman Falls
Smokey Hollow Falls
Tew Falls
Tiffany Falls
Walter's Falls
Webster Falls & Spencer Gorge Conservation Area
Webwood Falls

Beyond the beautiful waterfalls, be sure to check out our Places to See category, to find more interesting Ontario places to explore!

We also have a long list of Campground Reviews, and a ton of Camping Recipes to cook up, while on your adventures!