Holmes Chapel Falls

Holmes Chapel Falls is a nice waterfall to visit simply for the easy access. You will probably have a harder time driving on the forest service road than on the hike itself. Don't let that discourage you from driving there though, the drive is easy too.

I would consider the hike to be easy, but there is a bit of a nearly vertical climb that's under 10 feet. The hike is less than a mile round trip, possibly only 1/2 mile. Unfortunately, I didn't get a track to confirm.

During my visit I only encountered a couple other groups. I honestly have no idea what this place would be like in the warmer seasons. I have read it doesn't flow as well in the warmer and dryer months, but it's possible for it to be a place people like to take a dip. One thing that surprised me was the surrounding area. After spending some time down at the falls and getting some pictures, I made my way back up top and decided to walk to the top of the falls. The creek that feeds the falls is fairly wide for the volume, but obviously very shallow also. It was very easy to cross without getting my shoes wet. It's quite beautiful as you can see in my picture below. I then crossed over the creek to follow an old road and I found an area that would make for a wonderful camp site. I'm not sure how much privacy you would get, but if so, it's a great location. You can still hear the falls, but muted quite a bit, and you obviously would have water to filter. I will be sure to check it out again during the summer months.

As mentioned earlier, I did not get a log of the hike, so the map below is only of the location and a hand drawn line that shows the rough estimate of the trail.

As for my rating of the falls, I'm going to probably surprise you. While the falls is beautiful in its own right, the surrounding area I explored gives it another point. I would rate it 8/10.