Pfeiffer Falls

Pfeiffer Falls is a 60-foot cascade over moss-covered granite in a redwood-filled ravine. It is a hike-in stop, not a roadside pullout, and the walk is part of the reason to come: a rising forest path, a footbridge, then the falls. The drop can feel modest beside Big Sur's larger scenery, so it suits you best if the redwood walk sounds as good as the waterfall.

The trail climbs about 200 feet through redwood and oak woodland to a junction. Take the right branch for Pfeiffer Falls; the left climbs another 300 feet toward Valley View. The falls branch crosses through redwoods and over a bridge above a tributary ravine. This is a proper uphill walk, not a quick stroll from a viewpoint parking area.

The 70-foot pedestrian bridge crosses Pfeiffer Redwood Creek ravine and gives you an elevated look into the redwood canopy. It is more than a way across: slow down and take in the ravine from above before continuing to the waterfall.

Water runs down a steep, mossy granite face with ferns and other greenery at its edges. At the falls, frame some of the rock wall around the stream; a tight crop can hide the scale and make the cascade look smaller than it feels in its setting.

The Basin Complex Fire badly damaged the route in 2008. State Parks and Save the Redwoods League later rerouted and renovated it, removing older asphalt and concrete pathing; the trail reopened in 2021. A storm-felled redwood damaged the bridge in 2023. Crews salvaged most of it and replaced a 15-foot section, and the restored bridge reopened in 2025.

Pfeiffer Falls sits in a coast-redwood forest near the southern end of the trees' natural range. Look for ferns and redwood sorrel beneath the canopy as you make your way through the ravine; the waterfall's mossy granite is part of the same cool, shaded setting.