We can’t quite remember if it’s been five or six years that we have made our Annual Feather Falls Hike, but no matter, every time there are two things that never change. One, the falls are always spectacular, and two, the hike always kicks my butt!! Feather Falls is located on a modest tributary of the Middle Fork Feather River, in Plumas National Forest in Butte County, California. At 640 feet, it is the sixth highest waterfall in the United States. It is visible from the middle arm of Lake Oroville. There are two trails maintained by the United States Forest Service leading up to it. The nearby town of Feather Falls, California takes its name from the falls.
The first quarter mile of trail is easy, gently rolling downward until you come to a split. At this point, you can take a shorter, steeper trail down (3.3 miles), or a longer, less steep trail down (4.5 miles) to reach the Falls. Going down isn’t such a big deal, and there isn’t much difference between the two trails if you are in pretty good shape. Coming back up, however, it is much easier to take the longer less steep way out. We’ve done it both ways. The first year we went we didn’t realize the difference, and took the short way in and out. Ouch!! We weren’t in shape for that and felt the aches and pains for several days. The next two or three times we took the short way down, the long way back, and it was better. It still kicked my butt, but not as hard or as long! This year we thought we would try the short trail back up because we have both taken up running in the last couple of years and figured we must be in better shape than ever. And, it may not have been such a big deal except that we sort of got off trail on the last mile out and climbing out of the hole we found ourselves in was probably harder than if we had stayed on the actual trail. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men, now we’ll never know!
Here are a few snap shots from the hike.
The first quarter mile of trail is easy, gently rolling downward until you come to a split. At this point, you can take a shorter, steeper trail down (3.3 miles), or a longer, less steep trail down (4.5 miles) to reach the Falls. Going down isn’t such a big deal, and there isn’t much difference between the two trails if you are in pretty good shape. Coming back up, however, it is much easier to take the longer less steep way out. We’ve done it both ways. The first year we went we didn’t realize the difference, and took the short way in and out. Ouch!! We weren’t in shape for that and felt the aches and pains for several days. The next two or three times we took the short way down, the long way back, and it was better. It still kicked my butt, but not as hard or as long! This year we thought we would try the short trail back up because we have both taken up running in the last couple of years and figured we must be in better shape than ever. And, it may not have been such a big deal except that we sort of got off trail on the last mile out and climbing out of the hole we found ourselves in was probably harder than if we had stayed on the actual trail. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men, now we’ll never know!
Here are a few snap shots from the hike.
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