Marlboro Falls

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Location / Directions / Maps

Location: In the hamlet of Marlboro; town of Marlborough; Ulster County; Hudson Valley Region; New York.

Maps: Google Map; Topographic; Interactive map.

GPS Coordinates: N 41.60593 / W 73.97095

Directions: Take I-9W into the town of Marlborough and into the hamlet of Marlboro. Turn east onto Dock Rd.

Parking: Park in the lot behind The Falcon, or look for roadside parking in the area. Note that The Falcon is a private business and this lot is for customers only. Alternatively, public parking is available along Western Ave and King Street.

Weather

MARLBORO WEATHER

Information / Accessibility / Accommodations

Marlboro Falls can be seen from The Falcon music venue and restaurant. This is private property, so seek permission to park and visit the falls, or, better yet, come for a show and some food and drinks.

Number of falls: 2. Marlboro Falls is next to The Falcon music venue and restaurant. Wright Falls is located upstream and across the street.

Size/Types: Marlboro Falls is estimated at about 135 ft in total height (many sources just claim 100 ft). It begins just downstream from the I-9W bridge and cascades about 50 ft down past the patio of The Falcon, a music venue and restaurant. The middle of the falls picks up great speed as the gorge narrows, funneling the stream into a high-speed chute. Just as the cliffs spread apart, the falls fans out with them, taking a final tumble down of about 65 ft. Unfortunately, the lower reaches of the falls are difficult to see and not accessible.

Upstream from Marlboro Falls is Wright Falls, a 20ft tall dam on top of a small natural cascade. It can be seen from the I-9W bridge over Lattintown Creek, when leaves are off the trees.

Best time to visit: Year-round. The falls becomes a significant torrent during late winter and early spring.

Waterway: Lattintown Creek, which originates in the town of Plattekill and flows generally southeast through the towns of Marlborough and Newburgh before emptying into the Hudson River near the hamlet of Marlboro. The creek traverses a mix of rural and suburban landscapes, featuring sections of woodlands and agricultural areas. Notably, it passes through the hamlet of Lattintown, which derives its name from the Latting family, early settlers in the region during the mid-1700s.

Time: Just a few minutes to see the falls, but make a night of it and see a show at The Falcon.

Seasons/Hours: Hours vary. See The Falcon‘s hours and showtimes.

Admission: Free.

Handicap Accessibility: The upper patio of the Falcon seems to be chair accessible.

Pets: Not allowed.

Swimming: None.

Accommodations: The Falcon, which offers the only view of the falls, is a music venue, bar and restaurant with excellent reviews and a stellar reputation in the region. There are a handful of restaurants in the immediate area and a small convenience store and gas station just north of here.

Description

AKA Martin Brook Falls (historically)

Two waterfalls can be found in this location. The lesser known falls, Wright Falls, can be spotted upstream from the Route 8W bridge, but is often obscured by foliage. The best time to get a glimpse of it is from late fall through early spring, when the leaves have fallen. Wright Falls is about 20 ft high at least, with the top 3rd being a man-made dam (made of stone, I believe) and the bottom portion being a natural cascade.

Downstream from the road, Marlboro Falls is a bit more visible from the bridge, and even more accessible from The Falcon, a live music venue and restaurant that hugs the eastern shore along the falls. Still, this massive falls that tumbles over 130ft down is not completely visible from any accessible vantage point.

The best way to see the Marlboro Falls is to plan a visit to The Falcon for a show. A non-profit cultural hub combining live music, art, and dining in a scenic, multi-level venue. Founded by Tony Falco (1955–2021), the Falcon was born from a vision to create a space where music could be accessible to all, no matter their financial status. Operating with no tickets or cover charge, the venue relies entirely on audience donations, which go directly to the performers. This model ensures support for living artists while fostering a welcoming environment for music lovers.

The Falcon features several distinct spaces. The Main Stage, located on the top floor, is a 150-seat theater with vaulted ceilings, rotating art displays, and excellent acoustics. This intimate setting, enhanced by top-of-the-line instruments, overlooks Marlboro Falls, visible from an expansive deck. Below, the Falcon Underground offers a pub-style setting, a live music stage, and the Avalon Archives, a permanent exhibit showcasing music memorabilia, including rare photos, posters, and instruments. The kitchen serves a variety of fresh-made appetizers, burgers, and entrées that complement the environment perfectly.

Outside, a deck and walkway provide visitors with close up views of the top 2/3rds of the falls.
While a glimpse of part of the falls can be had from the roadside, with such a meaningful and accessible venue on site at the falls, offering live music, dining, and a bit of history, The Falcon is really the best way to enjoy it. Check out their upcoming shows and events here.

Marlboro Falls in Ulster County NY with outdoor dining area in the foreground

History

The hamlet of Marlboro is named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough. It’s a simplified spelling of Marlborough, of which the origins seem to have been lost. The town, in which the hamlet resides, is spelled Marlborough. Historically, the hamlet has been spelled both ways, which tends to lead to some confusion.

Lattintown Creek was originally known as Old Man’s Kill or Old Man’s Creek. A 1797 map of the town shows a mill of unknown type located about where The Falcon is located today and a sawmill downstream from Marlboro Falls. No mill is marked where Wright Falls is. These may have been the mills of Lewis DeBois, American Revolutionary War commander, who owned two grist mills and a sawmill on this creek around this time. Precision of the various mills’ dates, ownerships and purpose are difficult to parse from available records.

Hiking / Walking Trails

Difficulty: Easy. Just view the falls from the East Main St Bridge.

Map: Interactive.

Marlboro & Wright Falls Interactive Map

Interesting Stuff

Benmarl Winery – Oldest Vineyard in America

Located on the hills on the west side of the hamlet of Marlboro, this 37-acre vineyard is verified to be the oldest (but not the first) in America. Oddly enough, the winery doesn’t say when they were founded (do they even know?) but its origins trace back to Andrew Jackson Caywood purchasing 87-acres of land here around 1877, with grapes planted in 1879.

Gomez Mill House

Located south of Marlboro, just over the county line, in the town of Newburgh, Orange County, is this historic estate on what was known as Jews Creek (modern USGS maps have this waterway unnamed).

The Gomez Mill House is a national historic landmark and the oldest surviving Jewish residence in North America. Built shortly after acquisition of the land in 1714 by Luis Moses Gomez, a Sephardic Jewish merchant fleeing persecution, the house initially served as a home and trading post. Gomez leveraged its location near the Hudson River to trade goods with local settlers and Native Americans, becoming a significant figure in early colonial commerce.

Over the years, the house became home to various notable figures, including American Revolutionary War patriots and artisans. Among them was Dard Hunter, a craftsman and paper historian, who built a small paper mill in the shape of a Devonshire Cottage, and used the property as a papermaking studio in the early 20th century.

Today, the Gomez Mill House serves as a museum, preserving and interpreting its rich history while celebrating the diverse contributions of its former residents.

Photography Tips

Silky Water Effect

To get that smooth cotton-candy look to the falls, you need to use a Neutral Density (ND) filter on your lens. The ND filter will block some of the light from entering the lens without altering the color, and thus allows your shutter to stay open longer. This blurs the water and creates a soft white gloss to the foamy areas of the falls. Check out the article for all of the details.