Potem Falls

Nature couldn’t have designed Potem Falls better if it tried. A hidden gem of the greater Redding area, Potem Falls offers the perfect respite from Shasta County’s scorching summer heat. Potem is a beautiful watershed to experience any time of year, but summer is when Potem is at it’s best, with a postcard worthy pool laying at the base of a sheer 70-foot waterfall beckoning swimmers to take a dip. 

Those seeking to escape the heat will enjoy swimming out and around the waterfall's veil crashing down into the pool, and the rope swing provides Tarzan-like aerialists with a pendulum toward the pool’s center. Perhaps the only downside to Potem Falls is the limited amount of lounging spaces on the surrounding rocks; a handful of people will fill up the comfortable sunning real estate pretty quickly. 

Potem Falls is located along Potem Creek which flows directly in the Pit River system. The road leading into Potem, Fenders Ferry Road, crosses the Pit River Canyon a short ways before the parking pullout for Potem. A steep but short trail leads down to the pool directly from the parking pullout. Beware of poison oak along the trail; it’s abundant in the area. Please make sure to practice Leave No Trace principles and lend a helping hand by cleaning up any trash you see when visiting the Potem Falls and Pit River area.