Find Foliage and Waterfalls on This Hidden Gem Hike Near Amherst

It’s definitely that time of year when your friends who hike are living their best lives and giving you some real FOMO moments.

For me, it's the photos of my family and friends in their hiking gear, looking all snuggly and warm as they reach some mountain peak in New Hampshire with gorgeous foliage in the background. They probably just spent five hours climbing up a hill and now will spend the next half of the day coming back down the hill, and they for sure have seen some of the prettiest sights along the way.

I don't have the time or stamina to hike like they do but I want to see the fun stuff too, you know?

If you went to UMass Amherst, you may already know about Gunn Brook Falls in nearby Sunderland. This pair of waterfalls are each about 15 feet high and are a very quick and simple 0.2-mile hike in and out. You probably clock 0.2 miles during a Target trip so this should be totally doable.

Besides being totally easy to walk to, reviews of the hidden gem note that it is a perfect spot for a picnic, to leaf peep, for kids to explore, and duh, practice your photography skills. Did you even really visit a waterfall in real life if you didn’t get the perfect, silky-smooth long-exposure shot of it? Pro tip, visit waterfalls after the rain so you know they'll be roaring.

So while your super expert hiking friends may have seen some beautiful things in their long travels, you can too. Seeing a waterfall never gets old and not having to hike steep inclines for half a day just to do so makes the trip to Gun Brook Falls worth it.