A short, gentle trail leads to a beautiful 81-foot-high waterfall in a cool grotto.
Trip Type:
Day hike
Distance & Configuration:
2.4-mile out-and-back
Elevation Change:
400' (average 334'/mile)
Difficulty:
Easy
Season:
Year-round; best April–early June and late September–November
Map:
USGS French Gulch
Management:
Whiskeytown NRA, 530-242-3400, nps.gov/whis
Nearest Campground:
Oak Bottom
Two different trails lead to scenic Boulder Creek Falls, a dramatic 81-foot-high waterfall tucked into a narrow and shady canyon. The 2.75-mile-long trail featured by the National Park Service follows the creek most of the way from a conveniently accessed trailhead just off South Shore Drive. However, following this route necessitates crossing the creek three times, and during spring, when the falls are at peak glory, you’re almost guaranteed to come away with wet footwear. The alternate trail described below is considerably shorter and avoids all three fords, but does require a slightly longer drive to reach the trailhead.
GPS COORDINATES N40° 38.2298' W122° 38.193'
DIRECTIONS Head west from Redding on CA 299 for 8 miles and then turn left (southwest) onto Kennedy Memorial Drive. The visitor center immediately on the right is the place to obtain current information and purchase a daily, weekly, or annual pass that is required to park at any NRA trailhead. With pass in hand, return to CA 299, turn left, and continue westbound 7 miles along the north shore of Whiskeytown Lake to a left-hand turn onto Carr Powerhouse Road. Cross a bridge over Clear Creek and proceed 0.5 mile to a junction with Mill Creek Road. Turn right and follow the dirt surface of Mill Creek Road 0.4 mile to a junction and bear right. Proceed for another 1.4 miles, where the road splits again and steel chains block further vehicular progress. Park your car as space allows along the shoulder. The upper road is your route, signed BOULDER CREEK FALLS.
Boulder Creek Falls
Description
From the gate, follow the continuation of the road on a steep and exposed climb through manzanita and widely scattered pines and oaks. Fortunately, both the steep ascent and exposure to the sun are short-lived, as the grade soon eases and a dense forest of incense cedars, ponderosa pines, Douglas-firs, canyon live oaks, black oaks, and tan oaks provides some welcome shade. Springtime promises the added bonus of flowering dogwoods. Poison oak is quite prevalent along the way, but the width of the old roadbed is plenty wide enough to avoid any potential contact. Gently descending tread leads farther into the forest and across a couple of seasonal tributaries of Boulder Creek.
As you begin to hear the roar of the creek ahead, the trail curves around toward Boulder Creek, where you will soon notice an appreciable drop in the temperature in the cool and moist environment of the canyon. Cross the creek on a wood-plank bridge and immediately turn upstream, forsaking the old road for a narrow, singletrack trail. Ascend steeply up the canyon, aided by wood-beam steps, and soon spy the falls through the trees. Continue climbing to the base of the falls, with a trail register and park bench nearby.
MILL CREEK TRAILHEAD
TRIP 4 Whiskeytown Falls
A rediscovered gem has become the waterfall to see at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area.
Trip Type:
Day hike
Distance & Configuration:
3.4-mile out-and-back
Elevation Change:
1,040' (average 612'/mile)
Difficulty:
Moderate–strenuous
Season:
Year-round; best April–early June and late September–November
Maps:
USGS French Gulch and Shasta Bally
Management:
Whiskeytown NRA, 530-242-3400, nps.gov/whis
Nearest Campground:
Oak Bottom
In this day and age, forgetting about a significant waterfall is hard to imagine, but that’s exactly what occurred with Whiskeytown Falls. In 2004, park biologist Russ Weatherbee rediscovered the falls, not as he stumbled across the dramatic cascade in the field but as he was examining some aerial photos in his office. Subsequently, Weatherbee and a fellow National Park Service geologist, Brian Rasmussen, hiked to the falls and confirmed what had been seen on the photos.
Although the distance is fairly short at 1.7 miles, after the short stretch down to the crossing of the west fork of Crystal Creek, the well-used James K. Carr Trail to Whiskeytown Falls climbs quite steeply. The stiff climb passes through a forest that was selectively logged in the 1950s, succeeded by a mixed, second-growth forest of oaks and evergreens. During weekends in spring, when the waterfall puts on a most dramatic display, you may notice a high number of tourists lumbering up the trail or catching their breath on one of the many park benches sporadically placed along the way. Nearing the falls, the trail enters a narrow canyon and climbs closely along the creek for the final quarter mile. The labor of the stiff ascent is well rewarded once you reach the base of the falls, where you’ll be treated to a fine view of Whiskeytown Fall’s watery splendor. A stone stairway lined with handrails leads alongside the falls for an even closer view.
Whiskeytown Falls
GPS COORDINATES N40° 38.304' W122° 40.558'
DIRECTIONS Head west from Redding on CA 299 for 8 miles and then turn left (southwest) onto Kennedy Memorial Drive. The visitor center immediately on the right is the place to obtain current information and purchase a daily, weekly, or annual pass that is required to park at any NRA trailhead. With pass in hand, return to CA 299, turn left, and continue westbound 8 more miles to a left-hand turn onto Crystal Creek Road, which is about 0.25 mile past the turnoff for Tower House Historic District. Drive up Crystal Creek Road past junctions to the Crystal Creek Picnic Area and Crystal Creek Campground to a gravel parking area, 3.75 miles from CA 299. The trailhead is equipped with portable toilets and trash and recycling bins. On the way back you may want to stop at Crystal Creek Picnic Area for the superb view of Crystal Creek Falls.
Description
The trail begins by following alongside a split-rail fence on a moderate descent across a mostly open slope that eventually leads into a mixed evergreen and deciduous forest on the way down to a crossing of the west fork of Crystal Creek via some well-placed beams. A short steep climb heads away from the creek and up to the top of a rise, where the grade momentarily eases. Nearby, the first of many park benches along the way offers winded tourists the opportunity to sit