It’s the month of May and the weather is great. The Central Valley of California has awesome spring weather. The temperature hovered around 70F during the day and 40F at night. Snow is melting(or has melted) so water is high. That means waterfalls are strong and mighty.
With great weather comes great opportunities to be in the outdoors. We choose a simple hike that provided shade, a river, and a great waterfall. Also, the area is dog-friendly! Bassi Falls was calling our name and it was on our checklist.
Bassi Falls
Bassi Falls is located in the El Dorado National Forest. The drive is about 1.5 to 2 hours from Sacramento. At about 60 miles away, it’s not that far. In fact, you can visit Apple Hill after this hike.
We began driving at 630 am and arrived at around 8 am. The winding roads weren’t so bad and Google maps was on point. Parking was easy to find with a compact car. We were the first ones there!
Location of the Trail Head: Google Maps
The Hike
With the trail of 4.5 miles roundtrip, the path rides along the river. In some areas, the trails are everywhere so it was easy to lose it. Nonetheless, there was LTE service for T-Mobile. Once we reached the river, we were in awe of how much water was flowing.
Though quite dangerous, it was magnificent. Our dogs, Hiro and Autumn, love the outdoors. You will find lots of people with dogs here. As we followed the trial, there were lots of places for great photo opportunities.
As you get to Bassi Falls, you can see why people hike here. It’s beautiful. The base of the water is nice as you can walk to the middle of the streams.
Once at the base of the waterfall, you will have a small climb to the top where the water runs wild. There is a good amount of shade in the morning but in the noontime, it’s hot. We took a little break before we headed back to the car.
As we climbed down, we realized we took another route down. It was okay as it was transversed before. At the bottom, we saw other hikers looking for a route up.As we hiked backed to the car, we also took another route. The trails aren’t that straightforward. Nonetheless, it’s all connected one way or another.
Overall
The hike was easy and safe. It’s great that dogs are allowed as well. the Hike is about 4.5 miles in and out depending on what route you take. It took us about 2 hours with the break and taking photos.
We would definitely recommend this hike. Just keep in mind the elevation is about 5000 feet so it may affect you.
Quick Links
Trailhead: Google Maps
Trail map: All Trails
Forest Information: USDA
