1501 Green Road
Madison, IN 47250
(812) 265-1331
Clifty Falls State Park is located near Madison with entrances off State Roads 56 and 62. Clifty Falls is best know for its waterfalls all along Clifty Creek, deeply cut gorges, and rock wall cliffs. The best times to view the falls are during the winter and spring when the leaves are down. At the north end of the park, Clifty Creek plunges nearly 70 feet in the biggest waterfall on Clifty Creek. Then the creek drops another 250 feet on it's way to the Ohio River. There are four large waterfalls and many other smaller ones in the park. This park has some of the most rugged hiking trails of all of Indiana's parks. Most of the rugged trails are in Clifty Creek itself.
One can also view an abundance of fossils in the rocks that make up the valley. There is also a beautiful overlook of the Ohio River on the south end of the park behind Clifty Inn.
There are ruins of an abandoned railroad within the park which includes a partially completed tunnel. The railroad project ended in 1853 when the Madison and Indianapolis Railroad Company ran into financial problems. In addition to the tunnel, the original grade and several piers and trestle abutments can be seen along the trails on the east side of Clifty Creek.
Some of the facilities include: Inn accommodations, Inn Restaurant, meeting & conference facilities, nature center, naturalist services, picnicking, shelters, swimming pool, tennis, & camping.
Clifty Inn provides a modern facility with 71 rooms with a full service dining room. The Inn also features conference rooms, gift shop, video rentals, and swimming pool. If you'd like to stay at the Clifty Inn you can call and make reservations by dialing:
(812) 265-4135
Room Rates, Facilities
Clifty Falls supplies shelters for you to reserve. They may be reserved up to one year in advance. Shelters not reserved one day in advance will be open on a free, first-come, first served basis. Shelters are open from 7am to 11pm. Reservations may be make in person at the park office or by telephone.
The campgrounds are divided into 3 separate campgrounds. A camp store is open during the busier weekends and sells most needed items as well as firewood.
Half of the campsites can be reserved, the others are available on a first come first served basis. You can only reserve the sites by mail or in person. When sending a reservation in by mail, you must include a $6 reservation fee in addition to the fee charged for the site. As of February 1, 2002 electric sites (class A) are $16/night, and primitive sites (class C) are $8/night.
Camping reservations can be sent in as early as March 2nd for reservations between May 25th through Labor Day. When making reservations for Memorial Day, July 4th, & Labor Day, you must reserve and pay for the site for three nights. Sorry, no telephone reservations are accepted yet. Reservations cannot be cancelled by may be reassigned to other people or changed to other dates if you have your reservation receipt.
The family campground contains 106 electric (class A) and 59 primitive (class C) campsites.
Up to 6 people may occupy any one site. Up to 2 tents or 1 camper and 1 tent may occupy any 1 site. Only 1 vehicle is allowed on each site and this regulation is strictly enforced! A site may be rented for a maximum of 14 days.
The youth tent campground area contains camping areas for groups of 10 or more with campers under 21 years and their adult leaders. The sites are available to public, semi-public, and not-for-profit groups only. Only tent camping is permitted. The facilities include: fire rings, picnic tables, pit toilets, and nearby drinking water. The rate for these sites are $2 per person per night. Reservations can be made by sending a $20 deposit, which will be credited toward the total bill, plus a $6 handling fee.
Up to date Camping Rates & Other Camping Info
Number of times this page has been accessed since July 9, 1998
Last updated March 22, 2002