One time, someone said BISH Bash to me, and for years, I said Bish Bash. But, that’s wrong. It’s BASH Bish. Maybe it’s the expression, mish mash, that’s throwing me off…I don’t know. Anyway…
“Bash Bish” is not only the name of one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the area, it is also the name of the Mohican woman that was to be thrown off the falls. She was charged with adultery – punishable by death – all the while maintaining her innocence.
She was about to be bound when a smokey mist and dozens of butterflies appeared and circled her head. She broke free and plunged into the waters from the top of the falls, sixty feet high, never to be seen again. It is said that sometimes the falls resembles a woman plunging into the pool.
However, if you’ve been accused of adultery, and are looking for some vindication, I wouldn’t count on the mist and butterflies happening again.
2021 – new rules – no one is allowed to swim in the falls or pool underneath, or even get close.
To visit the falls, you have a couple of options:
1. Park in the Bash Bish Falls parking lot and hike 3/4 mile.
2. Camp/park and spend the day at Taconic State Park (and eat ice cream) and hike a mile and a half to the falls.
At Taconic State Park, you can go swimming – in a cold, (seemingly) bottomless former ore mine pit – not for the faint of heart.
This is one of my favorite signs EVER.
It’s worth the trip just to see this sign. The falls are amazing, too.
“Please Refrain” is very polite. If I was commissioned to write that sign, it would read
“Why do you feel a need to stack rocks? Why?”
Or, simply “Rock Stacking? Don’t!”.
You will be walking back and forth over the NYS-MASS border, so you may want to bring both a Yankees and a Red Sox hat.
You can never be too careful.