Although there are many spectacular waterfalls in the world, the Eternal Flame Falls near Buffalo, New York, remains one of the most unique. Its uniqueness lies in a small flame burning inside a small grotto right beneath the cascading water, flickering for eternity. There is natural gas emitted inside the grotto, which produces a small flame when lit. It’s really a sight to behold, especially when you visit after a big rainfall when the waterfalls are rushing or in the winter when it freezes over. Even though the Eternal Flame Falls has become very popular nowadays, we highly recommend visiting.
Pro-tip: If for any reason, the flame goes out, you can reignite it with a lighter.
Eternal Flame Falls Main Trailhead & Parking Lot
Chestnut Ridge Rd, Orchard Park, NY 14127
42.702818, -78.747648
Roadside Parking
42.700120, -78.752550
There is a decent-sized gravel lot at the main trailhead. You can also park along the Seufert Road.
Free
There is a port a potty on site and a trash can at the trailhead.
1.2 mi R.T.
134 ft
Easy to Moderate.
Takes average 30 minutes – 1 hour.
Pets are allowed if on leash.
Eternal Flame Falls is beautiful year-round. However, it’s at its best either after the Spring melt, a big rainfalls or in the winter, when the waterfalls is frozen. If you want to avoid crowd, go early in the morning or on weekdays.
Eternal Flame Falls is located on the southern end of Chestnut Ridge Park, about 20 miles south of Buffalo, New York. You can either find it on Google Maps with a quick search or use the coordinates above.
There is a decent-sized gravel parking lot in front of the main trailhead. The Eternal Flame Falls is a popular trail, so the parking lot can be full. Another option is to park along Seufert Rd and hike in from there. We also put the coordinates for that in the stats section. As for us, we started out from the main trailhead and parking lot.
The Eternal Flame Trail is quite short, only 0.75 miles each way. In our opinion, this hike is easy, if you wear the right shoes. We recommend wearing hiking shoes or boots with good traction. If you’re hiking in the winter, microspikes might be a good idea. The trail is well-defined with the flame signs (🔥) marking the way.
From the parking lot, we followed the wide gravel trail leading into the woods. The gravel path turns into dirt as it weaves its way through a large grove of Hemlock trees. These trees were so dense that we remained in the shade the entire way.
About 0.4 miles, we started to descend a series of wooden block stairs before getting to Shale Creek. Supposedly, these stairs were added in 2023, turning the climb down the ravine from treacherous to a lot safer. That being said, these stairs can be slippery when wet or in the winter. So, be careful when you’re climbing down. By the way, make sure to stay on the established trail. Please DO NOT attempt to climb up or down the ravine or the waterfalls. The walls are steeper than they look and very slippery. Many people have died trying to climb down the ravine.
Once we got down to the bottom of the creek, we followed the Eternal Flame Falls Trail to go left and through the creek for another quarter of a mile before reaching the Eternal Flame Falls. When we went, there was little water in the creek. Even so, it can be a bit challenging when navigating through this section. If you visit the Eternal Flame Falls in the Spring when the snow melts, you might have to wade through water to get to the falls.
Along the creek, there are many obstacles to bypass, such as fallen trees, pools of water, and rocky steps. When we went, there were tons of fallen leaves all over the rocky floor. Between the fallen leaves and muddy water, the rocky floor can get very slippery. We were appreciating our La Sportiva shoes. Please make sure to be careful when you’re hiking through this section. When we went, there was a guy driving his RC rock crawler up and down the rocky steps. It looked so fun, definitely reminded us of the time when we took the RZR to the Broken Arrow Trail in Sedona.
Eventually, we reached our destination, the unique Eternal Flame Falls. When we were there, the water wasn’t flowing much. Even so, it was pretty cool to see the natural flame flickering away behind the trickling water. I can’t imaging how cool it is if the waterfalls were at its full capacity or frozen. Since it’s a popular trail, you might have to wait a bit for your photos with the eternal flame. If you want to avoid the crowd, go early in the day.
Despite the crowd, we enjoyed our hike to Eternal Flame Falls. It was a great addition to our trip to visit Niagara Falls. If you love waterfalls, we recommend checking out the Trail of Ten Falls in Oregon. It’s a popular trail, yet so beautiful. It passed by 10 different waterfalls.
Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to check out the related posts below for more inspiration on your upcoming adventures. While at it, follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel! We’ll love you forever!
These are the gear that we personally use and find helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
Our favorite biodegradable, eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen!
This is Vy's favorite hiking bag! It has tons of room for snacks and water!
It's always good to bring a GPS tracker with you. We use the Garmin inReach.
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
If you tend to have foot blisters on hikes, get this! We use this all the time.
These hiking poles are sturdy, and great to help keep your balance on short or longer hikes
Compact GoPro pole that extends to 25", perfect to bring on your adventure.
This is our go-to camera for all of our adventures. It comes with us everywhere!
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Hi! We are Dustin & Vy, the proud creators of Live That Adventure. We created this website because we wanted to inspire others to live their lives to the fullest. On here, you’ll find everything from hiking, canyoneering, kayaking, and snorkeling to adventure and travel tips, gear reviews, and bucket list items such as bungee jumping or wing walking. We’ll show you the ropes so you can do them too!
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