Carson Falls Carson Falls is another series of waterfalls (though not as extensive a series as the nearby Cataract Falls).  book.As for the falls itself, there's a topmost tier, which consists of two minor plunges (I'm guessing about 20-30ft in total height for this section). I happened to see some blooming larkspur flowers fronting this section of the waterfall. Below that section, the falls then descends an attractive 20-30ft drop before going down a few more cascades, and then finally a dramatic 40-50ft drop into a shadowy, well-forested cove.
The 3.5-mile hike begins at a car park right across the Fairfax-Bolinas Road from the gated Pine Mountain Fire Road. You actually hike on the fire road, which is totally exposed to the sun as it ascends up a minor hill, then drops briefly before making a longer climb up to the summit of the Pine Hill Road near some telephone lines. It's along this stretch of the trail that you get nice views (on a clear day) of the northern San Francisco Bay, a country club near the town of Fairfax below, and even a view of Alpine Lake if you're looking to the southwest. There are also mountain bikers sharing the Pine Mountain Road with hikers so be sure not to become an obstacle for them as I've seen a few of them scream downhill from the apex of the road (near the phone lines) down towards the minor hill and ultimately to the Fairfax-Bolinas Road.
[Back to top]  Mountain bikers approaching on the Pine Mountain Road Nice view towards the Northern San Francisco Bay The new Carson Falls trail The uppermost of the Carson Falls Full view of the main section of the falls from the lowest overlook Looking at the context of the falls Looking back at the bay from the phone lines near the apex of Pine Mountain Road Looking down at Alpine Lake on the return hike[Back to top] Bottom up sweep of the topmost tier of the falls with larkspurs blooming in the foreground Top down sweep of the upper section of the main falls from the upper overlook Top down sweep from the top of the falls to the base of the falls from the lowest overlook TRIP REPORTSFor more information about our experiences with this waterfall, check out the following travel stories.GUIDEBOOKS / OTHER RESOURCESNEARBY WATERFALLSHave You Been To This Waterfall?
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Beyond this falls, stream continues cascading down minor drops and rapids, but they're not photogenic. I actually did hike to the very bottom and didn't find it particularly worth it except that it was quite peaceful and naturesque down there.
Beyond the apex of Pine Mountain Road, there's a signed junction with Oat Hill Road. Take the Oat Hill Road (another fire road) downhill towards the next signed junction with the Carson Falls trail itself. This is actually the new Carson Falls trail thanks to some public funding that went into the trail restoration project that completed some time in 2009. Thus, the old trail, which more closely followed the telephone lines down to the falls, is closed. There are signs prohibiting the use of the old trail now.
The Carson Falls trail continues to descend passing briefly through a small grove of trees before being exposed to the open sun again. By that time, you'll be right at the uppermost of the waterfalls, and the trail then crosses a bridge above the top of the falls and curls around towards two more overlooks showcasing the next tiers of the falls. And if it's only the falls that you're after, you don't need to descend any further beyond these falls. Keep in mind that all that descending you've done to get here means that you're climbing to get all that elevation back on the return.
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| First, thanks for this cool website its nice to know about hidden gems in our backyard. We went on May 24th, 2008 and had the pleasure of seeing a running stream all the way...[more] |
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| This hike is AMAZING! I was happy going through this trail with a few friends as it was quite pretty.The road up is a long one and there were...[more] |
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| I absolutely loved the scenery of this whole hike and destination. It was very confusing to get there and we had to make a few U-Turns, but it was definitely worth...[more] |
| About a year ago, I was given a newspaper article describing these hidden falls in Orange County. The article itself did not specify the exact location, so I did some hunting online...[more] |
| Here is what I can only assume is called "Emerald Falls" just north of Filmore in Southern California. (In Los Padres National Forest) I think it is hands down...[more] |
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