Minaret Falls (Devil's Postpile National Monument, California, USA)

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Minaret Falls

Minaret Falls is a pleasant cascade just outside the northwestern boundaries of the Devils Postpile National Monument.

Tumbling probably some 150ft as it scatters on its way down the cliff, its display is most impressive during the early summer when its flow is highest. Of course if you do that, you'll have to endure hordes of blood-sucking mosquitoes at its swampy base. However, you can still see the falls in lower flow (late summer) and avoid them mosquitoes at its base.

From the nearest car park to the Devils Postpile, you'll have to walk about 1.5 miles (3 miles round trip) heading west (crossing a bridge over the San Joaquin River) then going north along part of the Pacific Crest Trail. Eventually at a four-way junction, you take a fork (to the right) that leads to the base of the waterfall where some additional scrambling is necessary to get right in front of the falls (as pictured above).

Devils Postpile The trailhead for this waterfall is also shared with the shortest path to the eccentric Devil's Postpile formation. It's roughly about 0.25 miles from the trailhead where you can get right in front of the basalt columns. But you can also go up stairs to get right to the top of the columns where the ground below you looks like it was laid out with hexagonal tiles (yet they're really the cross-sectional shape of the basalt columns you saw below). It's definitely worth the side trip if you're doing this waterfall.

Directions: See the directions for Rainbow Falls. However, you get off one shuttle stop before the ones for Rainbow Falls. Of course, you do have the option of combining this hike with the Rainbow Falls hike so you don't have to worry about getting on and off multiple shuttle stops.

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Bridge over the San Joaquin River

Closer look at the Devil's Postpile

Devils Postpile as seen back in 2001

Hexagonal tiles atop Devils Postpile

Hexagonal "tiles" atop Devil's Postpile formation

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Old video of the falls braving heaps of mosquitoes at its swampy base

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