Mount Shasta

The Mount Shasta Area 7 Waterfall Loop

I had booked us several days in the Mount Shasta area specifically to hike to the area waterfalls. There are actually 8 waterfalls as part of this loop, but we only made it to 7 of them, I’ll explain why toward the end of this blog article. When we arrived in the town of Mount Shasta in late June, we were immediately struck by the heat. We had spent the preceding weeks in the cool mountain air and now we were in the high 90’s to 100 degree heat. Because of this we decided to take the dogs in the first evening and go explore while the weather was a bit cooler as the sun was going down.

Faery Falls

Only 15 minutes from our campsite was Faery Falls. This is a fairly short three-quarter mile out and three-quarter mile back hike to a nice waterfall. We took both of our pups on this dog friendly hike. At about .6 of a mile, there is a pile of rocks and a trail leading to the left – be sure to take this narrow trail and it is only another .1 of a mile to the waterfall.  We were able to scramble down to the base of the 40 foot tall waterfall and splash in the water.

McCloud Falls- Three Waterfalls In One Stop

There are 2 options to see all three sections of the falls. You can park and hike the trail to all 3 sections. This is a 3.9 out and back hike.

The other option is to simply drive to each parking lot and take the short walk to each waterfall overlook.  We started at the lower falls which has a short accessible walk from the parking lot. The Lower McCloud Falls is gorgeous with a big pool at the bottom and a couple of anglers, hoping to catch a fish.

From there we parked at the parking lot for the Middle McCloud Falls, which is way up above the falls. We noticed on our All Trails map that there is a path down to the river so we decided to take it.  The path is very steep and starts out with 33 steps going straight down and then a zigzag trail to the bottom.  If you are able, it is completely worthwhile to get to the bottom and see the falls up close.

From there you can drive to the Upper Falls but we decided to hike the short distance there and back. There is no access to the base of the Upper McCloud Falls but there are nice viewing areas from the top.

McArthur- Burney Falls Memorial State Park

The main draw of McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park is the magnificent waterfall right inside the park entrance. This is the most popular waterfall in the area and is over-populated. If you can’t get a spot up top you have to park at the bottom by the lake and hike up in order to start the falls trails. We highly recommend coming early and hoping for a spot near the visitors center.

There is an accessible viewing area near the visitor center that gives a nice overview of the falls.  After checking that out we chose to take the 1.2 mile Loop Trail so that we could get down along the river and to the base of the falls.

We went counterclockwise, which allowed us to be at the base of the fall very quickly. From there, we started the loop trail and almost immediately noticed the lava rocks that completely cover the hillside along the trail. Shortly after this we crossed the bridge over the river and started our ascent back up. There are a couple of viewing areas along the top but truly, the best way to see this waterfall is from the bottom.

Potem Falls

The trailhead is clearly marked for this .3 of a mile hike down and .3 of a mile hike back up to the top. This hike is accessed from a grave and dirt road that is about 7 miles long. While driving down the road we startled a baby bear who frantically tried climbing the steep embankment. After several attempts, baby bear made it up and into the safety of the woods above.

The path itself down to the fall is a switchback path that is very narrow with uneven terrain. The falls are absolutely gorgeous with an ice cold pool of water at the bottom. On a 90° day, the water was refreshing.  This is the most out of the way and off the beaten path waterfall as part of our waterfall loop. It is very worthwhile the effort to get there.

Hedge Creek Falls -

Located in the town of Dunsmuir, this is a very cute small hike about .3 of a mile down and then back up again. This waterfall has a small pool and a path that goes directly behind the falls.  This would be a fun stop for young and older alike to get a rain shower waterfall experience.

Mossabrae Falls-

This is the waterfall that we did not get to as part of our waterfall loop. The access to Mossabrae Falls is currently closed as it is on private land owned by the railroad. There are some people that take the chance and walk down the railroad tracks in order to access the falls. We decided that since it is dangerous and illegal, we would skip this hike and leave it on our list for another time when the access becomes legal again.

Between the amazing views of mountain itself, the adorable town, and the amazing waterfalls, Mount Shasta has made our “we’ll be back” list.