8 of the Best Little-Known Waterfalls in Northern California

A couple weeks back, I came across the Instragram feed of Jeremy Tackitt.  I was met with beautiful image of waterfall after waterfall that I had never seen before.  That is unusual for me because even though I haven’t been to all the beautiful places in the world, I have seen images of most of them.  It was especially unusual because all these unknown waterfalls were in Northern California-I definitely feel like I should have known some of them.  I immediately got into contact with Jeremy and asked if he would share some of his favorite little-known waterfalls from Northern California.  He was generous enough to share eight of his favorite waterfalls.

1. Roaring creek falls

Roaring Creek Falls is located in Shasta County, Northern California.   Jeremy says Roaring Creek Falls is one of his favorite Shasta County waterfalls.  It is found outside the town of Montgomery Creek between Redding and Burney. The waterfall is 60 feet tall and consists of a two tiers.  Surprisingly, this falls is best viewed in winter due to activity at the nearby hydro facility.  This waterfall is definitely off the beaten bath and involves a bit of scrambling some unruly terrain to reach.

2. Lower Shingle Falls

Found in Spenceville Wildlife Area in Nevada County, Lower Shingle Falls is the lesser known of the two waterfalls in the area, but it is Jeremy’s favorite. It is found only 100 feet below the popular Upper Shingle Falls. The waterfall is 40 feet tall.  It isn’t a difficult hike, but is a rather steep climb down to the falls.  Although the upper falls is a bit more popular, this falls is actually easier to get to.

3. Hall Creek Falls

From Jeremy: “Quite possibly my favorite place of all time, Hall Creek Falls is an amazing 120’ waterfall deep in the Shasta County Wilderness.”  It is easy to see why Jeremy loves this waterfall!  Waterfalls have been one of my favorite things since I was a little kid, and while the massive plunging waterfalls are impressive, cascading waterfalls like this are so much more photogenic.  Jeremy says a GPS is a must to find Hall Creek Falls. It is very near to Roaring Creek, but in a very secluded part of the County.  The waterfall is only marginally accessible via a back road with a strenuous hike.

4. Lower Swamp Creek Falls

This is a small waterfall, but is worth the visit as it is found only a small bit below the Swamp Creek Falls discussed below. It is located in a wonderful, secluded area in the Feather River Canyon, Plumas County, Northern California.

5. Swamp Creek Falls

Swamp Creek Falls is a 40 foot drop that is part of a series of drops that equal 150 feet and is typical for the Feather River Canyon. This one can be found by parking at Rock Creek and following the railroad tracks down about two miles.

6. Deadhorse Creek Falls

Deadhorse Creek Falls is in Tehama County in the Lassen National Forest. A beautiful 70 foot waterfall that almost dries up during summer.  Because of this, Jeremy recommends a visit in winter after good rain.  During such an occasion, Jeremy claims it is one of the most beautiful falls he has ever seen. The waterfall is technically on Sierra Pacific Lumber land, but hiking is permitted.  However, driving is not permitted, so be prepared to hike a bit

7. Murphy Creek Falls

Another Feather River Canyon, Plumas County waterfall, Murphy Creek Falls is a 50 foot drop only a mile off the main road.  Notwithstanding the easy access, Jeremy says it is almost virtually unknown. He discovered this Murphy Creek Falls by looking on Google Earth. You can reach it by parking at a small turnout on highway 70 across from the Rock Creek Dam and hiking a small trail until you reach the waterfall.

8. Clover Creek Falls

Probably the most difficult of all these eight waterfalls to access, the 100 foot Clover Creek Falls is found outside the small rural town of Oak Run in Shasta County. Clover Creek Falls has its own location point if entered into Google maps, but is surrounded by private property, so reaching it can be tricky.

About Jeremy Tackitt

Jeremy Tackitt was born and raised in Butte County. He began hiking regularly a few years ago and soon realized that taking pictures was a good way to share his experiences with others. He began with a small point and shoot for a couple years before buying his first DSLR camera.  Jeremy currently shoots primarily with a Nikon d750 with a Nikkor 16-35mm fx lens.

Jeremy says he quickly found that waterfall pictures were fairly common.  A realization I quickly reached as well.  Every popular waterfall has a million of the same images out there.  Jeremy decided to conquer this difficulty by hunting down the waterfalls that were hard to find and get to, and that most people would otherwise never see. He has been doing that for about a year now. He hopes to continue his travels, making more great finds so that he can one day compile a Northern California waterfall book. Jeremy wanted to give credit to Leon Turnbull and waterfallswest.com, which has been an awesome resource for him on his journey.  You can see more of Jeremy’s work on Instagram.