About this spot
Cotton Hollow Cascades sit on Roaring Brook inside Glastonbury's 80-acre Cotton Hollow Preserve, reached via an easy trail from the parking area off Hopewell Road, less than a tenth of a mile to the upper falls. The upper falls is a semi-steep 8-foot cascade sliding past the remains of an old stone dam; about 100 feet downstream, boulder-formed lower falls (two 4-foot drops) create the deeper pools where locals swim and cliff/rock jump. This is a well-documented swimming hole with multiple independent write-ups describing it as a classic New England spot. Watch for slippery dam ledges and rocks, and currents that pick up fast after rain. Swimming at the upper falls itself is discouraged; the lower pools are the traditional swim/jump area but are legally restricted to Glastonbury residents during the mid-June-to-mid-September season, with public trail access allowed year-round.