Tokopah Falls Trail in Sequoia National Park
Tokopah Falls, in Sequoia National Park, is a 1,200 foot waterfall that cascades over many levels and is a popular hike in the park. The hike is 4 miles round trip with 600 feet of elevation. It is beautiful as it follows the creek back into the canyon, with great views of the surrounding granite giants. Here is all the information if you want to check out this hike.
Details
- Costs $35 to enter the park unless you have a parks pass
- Can be busy during the summer and may require a shuttle
- Trailhead location: Lodgepole Campground
Getting There
Entering from the south side of Sequoia National Park, near Three Rivers, you will make your way up into the park and past the parking area for General Sherman. From there, you will reach the turnoff for Lodgepole and can follow the road back to the large parking area they have near the campground bathrooms.
The Trail
The trail then starts by heading along the water, out of the parking area, and crossing the bridge to get to the trailhead.
From there, you will be following the water pretty much all the way to the waterfall. It is an easy path to follow, and it is beautiful.
The water was flowing nicely next to the trail, and if you got hot, you could always dip your feet in.
The trail heads back into the canyon, and it goes in and out of shade cover.
The hike has 600 feet of elevation gain, but it is not very difficult as it is pretty gradual, with most of the uphill in the second half of the trail.
At around the one mile mark, you will see the watchtower, which is an imposing granite cliff the looks over the trail.
There are many great views of the tower with the water flowing below it, and it was one of my favorite aspects of the trail.
As you get to the last half mile of the trail, it starts using some switchbacks for elevation gain, and you will leave the tree cover and start walking along the rocks.
This is also where you will get your first view of the falls in the distance, and you can see how tall it is with all of the different cascades that feed the lowest level.
We saw a marmot here that posed for some photos and didn’t seem to care that we were there.
You will continue to walk along the rocks as you make your way towards the falls.
The views from the trail face the bottom part of the falls, and it’s imposing.
When you get to the end of the trail, you will be right at the base of the falls. You can only see the bottom falls from here, but it is still impressive. It’s a great spot to take a break and just enjoy the views.
Once you are done taking it all in, you will simply head back the way you came, and it is 2 miles back to the car.
I enjoyed this hike as it was incredibly beautiful and had a lot of great views. Check it out if you are in the park and let me know what you think in the comments.
Video
Here is a video I made of the trail as well.
