McCloud River Falls (Three Falls)
Shasta-Trinity National Forest (McCloud) · near McCloud / Mount Shasta · Shasta Cascade
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 4 miles
- Elevation gain
- 500 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- May–October (spring for volume, summer for swimming)
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit or fee. The River Trail links three tiers of falls; you can also drive to each overlook. A California Campfire Permit is needed only if you use a stove.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Three waterfalls in one hike · Swimming holes at Lower & Middle Falls · Mt. Shasta backdrop · Volcanic river canyon
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Hike upstream from Lower Falls to build to the dramatic Middle Falls as your midpoint payoff. Middle Falls is most powerful in spring; by mid-summer the pools at Lower and Middle become swimming holes (mind the submerged boulders — no jumping). The whole area sits under Mount Shasta, so the drive in is as scenic as the hike.
The guide
The McCloud River Falls are a trio of waterfalls — Lower, Middle, and Upper — strung along a beautiful stretch of the McCloud R…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to McCloud River Falls (Three Falls) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 41.238, -122.023