Hinkston Run Dam Waterfall near Johnstown Pa

This absolutely stunning waterfall can be seen from your car.  I'm standing on the road, not 5 feet from my parked car, to take this photo.

I was traveling from our hometown of Watsontown PA to the Pittsburgh airport, and this was one of my stops along the way.  It had been raining so hard for most of my drive that I almost didn't bother making the slight detour, but I am so glad I did!  This is one of the most beautiful waterfalls I have seen.  Possibly in part because of the fog that day, lifting above the fall.  It was an incredible sight, and just 10 minutes from the highway - my entire detour to see this added less than 30 minutes to my trip, and that includes me getting a bit lost on the way there.  (Google maps failed me here - that almost never happens!  But it wasn't hard to find  - just ignore the last turn and keep going straight, it will re-route you to the correct location.)

 

Waymarking.com lists this waterfall as 30 feet tall (it feels much taller than that?) and states that there have been several drownings in the pool at the bottom, thus the keep out signs.

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3GK5_Hinkston_Run_Dam_Waterfall

Hinkston Run Dam Waterfall is located at approximately  40°22'17.0"N 78°53'26.1"W

It's at the intersection of Waterfall Drive and Honan Rd.

Google Maps tried to have me turn left early, but the gravel road had big signs saying "Do Not Enter, Private Property, GPS IS WRONG."  :-)

I just kept going straight, and eventually google maps recalculated, and took me to the falls without any problems.  When I arrived, there were no parking signs to the right of the falls, but there was a small pull off area to the left.  The entire time I was on this road, I did not see another vehicle. 

This is a gorgeous video of the waterfall, which appears to have been taking by a drone, as it gives a great aerial view of the top of the fall.

If you really insist on walking to this waterfall, AllTrails shows a 2.6 mile loop hike that should take you here - although I didn't see any signs of a trail (only a road) nearby, and the comments on AllTrails about this trail are not positive - apparently it is a VERY poorly marked, hard to follow, trail. https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/pennsylvania/joseph-p-whipey-trail--2

I found this while researching the dam - it's from an old, archived, site, and is listed under "Short Term Goals" - so I am unsure if this bike trail was ever officially created - 

"Bike Trail:  Even though it’s not part of the said property, a biking trial which will not only provide family members with an enjoyable view, but offer the city of Johnstown to expand it’s heritage project. The bike trail will run from the current Johnstown Heritage site, running north along the old Hinkston Run Road, reaching the water fall at Water Fall Road. The trail then will split in two parts, one part staying on the western side of the dam, and rounding out on Benshoff Hill Road, then circling around the Dam. The other trail will head east crossing the dam then heading north along the shore line of the dam itself. The trail will then end up on 271, where by the trail will turn south towards Johnstown, reaching the other end of Hinkston Run Road, where by cyclist will turn right on to this road which will return them to the Dam." http://lhhv.tripod.com/id22.html

The American Whitewater site lists this area, but with an alert that it is absolutely illegal to attempt to kayak this, and you will be fined if you attempt it.  (You would also have to be completely insane to attempt it.) There were several no trespassing signs at the bottom of the falls. "The creek exits the reservoir and flows over 100 yards of Class 1 before plummeting of the falls. The falls is about 60 feet tall and falls into a deep pool. The clean line is down the left between the left wall and some junky shelves on the right. The falls slopes down about 30 feet before freefalling another 30 feet into the pool. " https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/detail/id/3790/
It does appeart that you can kayak the reseervoir above this - just not the spillway into the waterfall 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hinkston-Run-Damn/507024689358112

In the Harrisburg Telegraph, February 1917

Part of an article in the Pittsburgh Daily Post, October 1912

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Looking for more waterfalls?

Here's a list by county, with a map

https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2019/03/pennsylvania-waterfalls.html