Lake Kahola Falls

If you're passing

Is it plungeworthy?

—feet tall

A 2-tier dam on Kahola Falls.

Scale12/60

Documentation15/20

Character20/20

The details

Tiers: 2 drops
Type: Dam
Watercourse: Kahola Falls
Coordinates: 38.52935, -96.41401

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About Lake Kahola Falls

Lake Kahola Falls is a dam in Kansas, on Kahola Falls. The water falls in 2 distinct tiers.

It's fullest after rain, and flow can drop off during dry spells — plan around recent weather.

Plungeworthy rates Lake Kahola Falls 4.7/10 — if you're passing. The score weighs its scale, how confidently it's mapped, and its character.

What you'll find

The tallest total drop in Kansas waterfall country — roughly 55 feet across at least three cascades over 100 yards of spillway below Lake Kahola, complete with a 1936 Federal Emergency Relief Administration bridge and a 400-foot weir. (Our database said zero feet.) It also sits on a private lake.

Know what this listing is before you drive: Lake Kahola is owned and managed by its homeowners association — no public fishing, boating, or swimming. Sources conflict on whether the HOA grants falls access on request: one says permission can be arranged with a liability waiver; others say there's no public access at all.

The reliable version of this visit is the public-road view: drive along the lake's north side or across the dam at the east end. Anything closer is between you and the HOA.

Getting there

Road: Public roads along the north side and across the dam's east end give the drive-by view — near Dunlap, on the Morris/Chase county line, southwest of Council Grove
Heads up: One of the few Kansas lakes still free of invasive zebra mussels — part of why the HOA guards access.

When to go

After rain, from the public road.

Rules & fees

Fee / pass: Private HOA lake — no public access to the grounds; road view only unless the HOA grants permission
Warnings: Don't enter HOA property without arranged permission.

Researched from KansasTravel.org — Lake Kahola Waterfall. Conditions change — verify before you drive. Been to Lake Kahola Falls recently? Post a conditions report below.

Where it is

Planning a visit? We want your photo.

Lake Kahola Falls doesn't have a photo yet. If you make the trip, send one to hello@plungeworthy.com and we'll publish it here with credit to you.

Before you go

The pin marks the feature, not a trailhead or a legal route in. Some sit on private land or need a real hike, and conditions change with season and rain. Check local access, don't trespass, and never enter water — hot or cold — where it isn't safe.