Darwin Falls

Death Valley National Park / Panamint Springs, California, USA

About Darwin Falls

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Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Darwin Falls epitomized what was perhaps one of the great paradoxes when it comes to waterfalling in California.

Sitting within the boundaries of Death Valley National Park, which was known as one of the hottest and driest places on earth, this reportedly 25-30ft waterfall was said to be year-round.

Death_Valley_17_103_04082017 - Darwin Falls
Darwin Falls

That alone made it all the more crazy that such a place could exist in such a harsh desert landscape.

Now I should caveat its location in that the falls was technically in a side canyon of Panamint Valley, which was just on the other side of the Telescope Range from the main basin of Death Valley.

Nevertheless, from looking at the bare mountains surrounding Panamint Valley and the Panamint Springs area, that doesn’t diminish the fact that the falls indeed sits in a place where water was rare.

How is Darwin Falls possible?

What made the falls’ existence even possible in such a harsh environment was that it was fed by springs.

Darwin_Falls_045_03242006 - On our first visit to Darwin Falls back in March 2006, we saw frogs in Darwin Creek, which demonstrated the lush ecosystem within Darwin Canyon
On our first visit to Darwin Falls back in March 2006, we saw frogs in Darwin Creek, which demonstrated the lush ecosystem within Darwin Canyon

Springs are underground watercourses (or aquifers) mostly protected from the evaporative heat and low humidity that Death Valley and its surroundings are notorious for.

The desert conditions are mostly a result of the presence of the 14,000ft peaks of the Eastern Sierra (which includes Mt Whitney – the tallest mountain in the contiguous 48 states).

Anything to the east of these tall mountains would be in the range’s rain shadow.

Nonetheless, during the Winter months, snow could accumulate on the Panamint Ranges as well as further to the east of the Sierras and the Owens Valley.

Death_Valley_17_015_04082017 - The family making their way onto the wash en route to Darwin Falls. Note the lack of water in this stretch.
The family making their way onto the wash en route to Darwin Falls. Note the lack of water in this stretch.

Then, as the temperatures warm up, the snow melts and feeds the aquifers. Moreover, the Summer monsoon could also help add a little more water to the drainage.

Hiking to Darwin Falls – on the open wash

After finding the unpaved trailhead parking (see directions below), we walked up a wash.

In this stretch, the canyon was wide open and thus it was pretty exposed to the sun.

Other than the presence of water pipes on one side of the canyon walls (which I believe fed the Panamint Springs Resort nearby), there was really nothing here that would suggest the presence of water.

Death_Valley_17_046_04082017 - The family making their way up the dry wash towards the closing in of the canyon, which harbored the Darwin Falls. Notice the water pipes coming in from the right, which proved that this area does have water despite its harsh desert environment
The family making their way up the dry wash towards the closing in of the canyon, which harbored the Darwin Falls. Notice the water pipes coming in from the right, which proved that this area does have water despite its harsh desert environment

In any case, the first half-mile of the hike was pretty much dominated by the open wash scenery.

However, the further we went up the wash, the more the canyon walls flanking us were closing in.

Both times that we’ve done this hike in the Spring, there were wildflowers in bloom throughout the wash.

Hiking to Darwin Falls – following the creek

After the first half-mile, the canyon walls closed in to such an extent that the trail then bent to our right followed Darwin Creek.

Death_Valley_17_066_04082017 - The family negotiating some of the trickier parts on the way to Darwin Falls
The family negotiating some of the trickier parts on the way to Darwin Falls

The sudden appearance of water (where there wasn’t any to be seen in the wash earlier on) was because the canyon walls essentially acted as a funnel.

This funnel allowed vegetation to concentrate around the creek and further retain the precious moisture.

There were also a couple of minor cascades as well as tiny ponds where we happened to see toads or frogs the first time we did this hike (not so the second time as apparently this hike had gotten too popular).

Given the presence of the water and the more rugged terrain, the scrambling that was required to both avoid wetting the shoes while also avoiding bushwhacking made things a little interesting.

Death_Valley_17_071_04082017 - Scrambling upstream alongside Darwin Creek en route to the Darwin Falls
Scrambling upstream alongside Darwin Creek en route to the Darwin Falls

The trickiness of this part of the hike was more amplified when we brought kids along to do it.

While they were able to do the hike without issue for almost the entire length, there were a couple of spots where they needed assistance.

In general, when the scrambling yielded head-scratching moments, we generally kept to the left of the creek as we were going upstream.

Darwin Falls and possibly beyond?

Eventually after a mile from the trailhead, we would reach the attractive plunge pool fronting Darwin Falls with its split upside-down Y appearance thanks to a rock at its base splitting the course of the creek.

Death_Valley_17_074_04082017 - The family making it to Darwin Falls
The family making it to Darwin Falls

Each time we’ve done this hike, this was the turnaround point as the canyon walls were really rugged and nearly vertical at this point.

However, I did notice some people finding a way to scramble higher up on the cliffs to the left (facing the falls) as there were apparently more waterfalls on Darwin Creek further upstream from the Darwin Falls.

I can’t comment any further on those since we’ve never done it.

Anyways, it was easy to spend lots of time just marveling at the miracle of this waterfall in Death Valley.

Death_Valley_17_088_04082017 - Direct look at the Darwin Falls where the kids were throwing rocks while the adults just basked in this oasis
Direct look at the Darwin Falls where the kids were throwing rocks while the adults just basked in this oasis

The kids loved chucking rocks into the pool or attempt to climb the tree that was right at the edge of the plunge pool.

After having our fill of the falls, we went back down the way we came, which seemed to be much easier and faster as it only took us around 30 minutes to return.

On the way in, it took us nearly an hour or so.

Given how many people we saw on the return hike, it wasn’t lost upon us just how popular Darwin Falls was.

Death_Valley_17_158_04082017 - The family making their way out after having their fill of Darwin Falls
The family making their way out after having their fill of Darwin Falls

Indeed, this had to have been one of the highlights of a visit to Death Valley National Park.

Authorities

Darwin Falls is in Death Valley National Park near Panamint Springs in Inyo County, California. It is administered by the National Park Service. For information or inquiries about this area as well as current conditions, visit the NPS website.

Maps and Routing Content are for annual subscribers. See Membership Options.
Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.
Tagged with: death valley, panamint springs, inyo, sierra, desert, telescope, olancha, lone pine, california, waterfall



Visitor Comments:

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Death Valley National Park November 1, 2010 12:15 pm by Jenny Lenavena - I along with my family have been to Death Valley National Park in Summer. It was too hot that time and completely dry. We didn't find any waterfall over there. I guess we missed out on the beautiful scene and well as your toad floating in ponds (kidding). Apart from this scenery we managed to… ...Read More

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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
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