Parking
Use the Grant Grove Visitor Center lot, then cross Highway 180 to the signed trail access. Local area maps and trail guides are available at the visitor-center bookstore.
Overview
About Viola Falls Trail
Why go
- A creekside waterfall gives the walk a clear payoff.
- Starts at Grant Grove, with no extra drive into the canyon.
Heads up
- The return climbs the long descent back to Grant Grove.
- Waterfall flow can be much lower later in summer.
Viola Falls Trail is a forested out-and-back from Grant Grove Visitor Center to a small creekside cascade, about 3.9 miles round trip. Cross Highway 180 and follow South Boundary Trail to Sunset Trail, then take the signed falls spur. Allow about 2½ hours; stay longer if you want time at the water. It is a good half-day walk when a waterfall sounds better than a longer drive into the canyon.
Parkwolf’s verdictThe waterfall is the payoffMap & elevation
The route
Loading the Kings Canyon map
Full mapElevation6,020–6,624 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
8 active Kings Canyon alerts
- ClosureGrant Grove trails and areas closed for prescribed fireMentions Grant Grove, referenced in this guideSome trails and areas around Grant Grove and the General Grant Tree are closed during an active prescribed burn; stay out until crews clear hazards and reopen them.Official details
- CautionStage 1 fire restrictionsStage 1 fire restrictions are active because high fire danger raises the risk of accidental human-caused fires that could threaten visitors and employees.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Kings Canyon Tour Guide
Your drive to Viola Falls Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Kings Canyon National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Kings Canyon audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Grant Grove Village0:00 / 0:36
“You're coming into Grant Grove Village, a useful stop for ranger advice, a meal, or supplies.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Kings Canyon Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- General Grant Tree and Grant Grove
- The Bird That Plants Pines
- The Life on a Rock
- North Boundary and Lone Pine Loop
- 55 audio storiesacross Kings Canyon’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Mule Deer, Marmot, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 77 trails, 61 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“…The kids and my husband and I all agree that the narration really added to our experience driving through the parks. We learned so much about the history and the flora & fauna.”
Trail guide
Hiking Viola Falls Trail
Downhill first, uphill lastThe route runs through conifer forest on dirt tread, with pine needles underfoot in many…
The route runs through conifer forest on dirt tread, with pine needles underfoot in many sections. It loses roughly 600–800 feet on the way to the falls, so the same grade becomes the main work on the return. Watch for the Viola Falls sign at the branch; this outing turns back at Viola Falls and is shorter than the nearby Ella-and-Viola circuit.
A small granite cascadeViola Falls is a compact cascade spilling over pale granite into a shaded creek pool, not a…
Viola Falls is a compact cascade spilling over pale granite into a shaded creek pool, not a tall free-fall. The rounded rocks and water make a good close view; frame the drops with the pool and granite in the foreground. A farther lunch or photo spot involves stepping over boulders beside the creek. That hop is optional, and the rocks can be slick.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Kings Canyon
227 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
385 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
188 sightingsMarmotMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
118 sightingsPikaMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
14 sightingsGolden TroutMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
32 sightingsRainbow TroutMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Kings Canyon. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
