Chaudière Falls, Double waterfall system in Ontario and Quebec, Canada

Chaudière Falls is a set of cascades on the Ottawa River where it narrows between rocky escarpments, just west of the Chaudière Bridge between Ottawa and Gatineau. The falls are about 60 metres wide and drop 15 metres, surrounded by islands including Chaudière Island and Victoria Island. Dams and hydro stations divert much of the flow, so in summer the falls can nearly disappear.

The falls were already a meeting and portage place for Algonquin Anishinaabe peoples before Samuel de Champlain recorded them in his journal on 14 June 1613. In the 19th century the surrounding area was heavily industrialized, and dams and industry greatly altered the falls' appearance. Since 2017 the falls and hydro facilities have been publicly accessible through Chaudière Falls park, designed by architect Douglas Cardinal.

Samuel de Champlain recorded in 1613 that the Indigenous word for the falls was Asticou, meaning boiler, though this is now thought a misprint for the Algonquin Akikok; an Algonquin name is Akikodjiwan. For Anishinaabe who gathered along the portage routes, the whirlpool was the bowl of a great peace pipe and its mists smoke rising to the Creator.

The falls sit just west of the Chaudière Bridge, northwest of the Canadian War Museum at LeBreton Flats. Inaccessible for generations, the site opened to the public in 2017 as Chaudière Falls park, designed by architect Douglas Cardinal. In summer, when the Ottawa River runs low, water is diverted to Portage Power stations and the falls nearly vanish, so time a visit for higher water.

The falls sit between a rocky escarpment on both banks of the Ottawa River, just west of the Chaudière Bridge and beside the old E. B. Eddy industrial complex. In summer, when the river runs low, water is diverted to Portage Power stations and the falls nearly vanish. The site reopened to the public in 2017 with a park designed by architect Douglas Cardinal.