Devil's Punch Bowl

Geological curiosity and a 33-metre falls in the city's east end

The Devil's Punch Bowl is the most geologically interesting of Hamilton's waterfalls: a 33-metre ribbon cascade plunges into a near-circular rock amphitheatre cut deep into the escarpment, with the multicoloured bands of Silurian and Ordovician rock exposed in the gorge wall. The viewpoint on the escarpment top is a five-minute walk from the parking lot and gives you a wide view across the lower city to Lake Ontario.

A side trail leads down into the gorge and to the base of the falls — a tougher, sometimes slippery scramble. The neon cross on the rim is a Hamilton landmark, particularly visible at night. Stoney Creek's Heritage Trail starts here and continues east along the escarpment.

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A story
The colourful bands of stone in the gorge wall under the Devil's Punch Bowl record 500 million years of geological history — shales and limestones laid down when this part of Ontario was a tropical sea. A neon cross has stood on the rim since 1966, lit at Easter and Christmas; it can be seen across most of east Hamilton at night.