Following is a repost from April 16, 2010 when my son, his friend and I hiked to Eaton Canyon Falls. In the post I follow the two boys and try to show you what the hike to the Falls is like.
Hike to Eaton Canyon Falls
Come along with us on a hike to Eaton Canyon Falls.
The trail starts at the end of the parking lot in front of the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. It is 1.5 miles to the falls. That’s a picture of the trail head above.
The trail soon dips into a wide and rocky arroyo. A seasonal stream flows at the arroyo bottom. This is the first of many stream crossings.
Once on the other side of the arroyo, we were treated to an inviting stretch of oak-lined trail.
Sycamores, oaks and lots of sage. The trail continues north skirting the east side of the arroyo. Some shade along the way, but mostly the trail is in the sun.
Every now and then you can see (and hear) the stream from the trail. This picture was taken just south of the Mt. Wilson toll road bridge. The arroyo is still very wide a this point.
Sign along the trail by the bridge. We wander up to the toll road bridge and look south over the trail. Then back down to the trail. Now, just a half mile to the falls.
We walked down off the bridge and are back on the trail heading to the Falls. We are north of the bridge and this is the view looking south. The canyon narrows from here and it is cool and shady. The rock wall on the side foreshadows what is coming.
Look closely. That’s a millipede curled up in the end of that broken branch. You know they only have a few hundred legs; not a thousand.
Very quickly the trail leads us through some absolutely stunning scenes. We are treated to a mini-water fall.
As the canyon narrows and the stream winds around solid rock walls, the trail jumps from one side of the stream to the other. Here we are crossing from the left side of the stream to catch the trail on the right side.
Then downstream crossing back to catch the trail on the left side of the stream. There are lots of boulders and logs to help on the stream crossings. But, unless you are very nimble, you’re going to get wet.
We are now deep into the canyon. The falls are right around the corner. We see hikers on their way back. Anticipation builds and I can almost hear the roar of rushing water.
A short scramble over some boulders and after crossing the stream again, we’ve arrived.
The falls drops about 40 to 50 feet into a shallow round pool. The pool is just right for wading and on a hot day the cool water is refereshing. You can edge toward the falls and feel the mist of the falling water. Then, after you’re done with the pool, you can lay back on warm rocks to dry.
All in all, great hike and destination.
Leave a Reply