25 May 2003
Berry Creek Falls is one of the premier sights in the Bay Area. It's a 70-foot waterfall surrounded by lush second-growth redwood forests full of ferns and bright yellow banana slugs.
We set out on a 12-mile loop that began on the Skyline-to-Sea Trail, and wound its way up to the basin rim at 1200 feet. A 600-foot descent leads westwards towards the falls, 4.7 miles from the trailhead. In addition to the rushing water, you'll also see a viewing platform crowded with people, all of us with our cameras and other high-tech toys.
The crowds thin considerably though, if you continue up past Berry Creek Falls. A narrow staircase leads up to the two more cascading falls, known as Silver Falls and Golden Falls. We stopped for lunch in front of Silver Falls, which empties into a stone bowl surrounded by redwoods.
Immediately upstream from Silver Falls is the Golden Falls, which, in late spring at least, was just a light flow of water over golden-yellow sandstone. It's more like a waterslide than a true waterfall, but it's very nice nevertheless.
Passing Golden Falls, the trail intersects the Sunset Trail, which meanders back to the trailhead at the main park headquarters. It passes more redwood forests along the way, as well as heading out into dry chaparral and sunbaked rocks for a short stretch. Re-entering the cool, damp forest was delightful after a day of hiking. And the slushee at the park concession stand was a delightfully worthless mush of syrup and ice. Yum!