Potem Falls

Montgomery Creek / Shasta Lake / Shasta Trinity National Forest / Redding, California, USA

About Potem Falls

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Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Potem Falls (also referred to as Potem Creek Falls) could have easily been in its own waterfall attraction complete with picnic area, parking lot, signs, and the like.

After all, it featured an attractive 70ft plunge with a wide and deep enough pool that seemed very inviting for a swim on a hot day.

Potem_Falls_090_06202016 - Potem Falls
Potem Falls

As if that wasn’t enough, the drive and short hike to access it were pretty straightforward and manageable (provided you know where to look).

That said, Potem Falls seemed to be kind of an obscure waterfall with no signage nor seemingly any infrastructure to indicate its presence.

In fact, when Mom and I made our visit to this falls, it made us wonder just how this place was “found” in the first place.

Perhaps it was competing with the likes of Burney Falls, McCloud Falls, and several others, that it was pretty much relegated to only locals-in-the-know status, or known only to those specifically targeting this waterfall for a visit.

Potem_Falls_102_06202016 - Looking towards some kind of dam infrastructure near Potem Falls, which might be a reason why people have 'found' this waterfall
Looking towards some kind of dam infrastructure near Potem Falls, which might be a reason why people have ‘found’ this waterfall

I had theorized that because it was near a dam and the road was frequented by logging trucks, that perhaps the people doing the work here must have stumbled across Potem Falls.

Experiencing Potem Falls

Anyways, despite its obscure nature, once we knew where to pull over and stop the car (see directions below), we knew were in the right place as we could already hear Potem Falls making noise.

From there, we spotted a pretty obvious trail that immediately descended a few long switchbacks below the trailhead.

At the first switchback, we were able to get partial angled views down at the falls though the steep scrambling path to get right on the cliff’s edge seemed kind of dicey.

Potem_Falls_005_06202016 - Mom making her way down to Potem Falls from the unmarked pullout
Mom making her way down to Potem Falls from the unmarked pullout

So we continued walking on the well-used path leading away from the falls towards the last switchback.

Then, the trail descended back into the morning shade reaching the well-vegetated bottom of the gorge.

In order to get close to the wide plunge pool, we had to make a couple of slippery scrambles, but they were pretty manageable.

The footing was slippery due to the presence of mist that would often waft its way towards the trail and vegetation.

Potem_Falls_011_06202016 - Mom descending the tight switchbacks leading to the Potem Falls
Mom descending the tight switchbacks leading to the Potem Falls

It was merely a quarter-mile hike in each direction, and most of our time spent here was mostly trying to compose photographs while a morning rainbow was appearing at the waterfall’s base.

When all was said and done, we had spent about 45 minutes away from the car.

Of that time, probably 25-30 minutes of that time was spent hiking.

I’d imagine that later in the day when the sun would be directly overhead, this place would be the perfect spot for a swim to cool off.

Potem_Falls_052_06202016 - Broad look across the plunge pool at the Potem Falls
Broad look across the plunge pool at the Potem Falls

In the morning, the shadows were long, and I’d imagine the water would be bitterly cold since most of the runoff here would come from snowmelt.

Authorities

Potem Falls resides in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest near Redding and Burney in Shasta County, California. It is administered by the USDA Forest Service. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, visit their website.

Maps and Routing Content are for annual subscribers. See Membership Options.
Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.
Tagged with: montgomery creek, shasta lake, shasta trinity, national forest, redding, california, northern california, waterfall



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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.
Read More About Johnny | A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls.