Finding Mossbrae Falls – Northern California’s Forbidden Waterfall

Northern California is full of incredible waterfalls, many of which sit in the Shasta-Cascade region. The most unique of the waterfalls is Mossbrae Falls. The difference between Mossbrae and other NorCal waterfalls is that it seems the rock and moss are continually bleeding fresh, mountain water. It’s a sight to behold.
Mossbrae Falls is actually a series of springs that burst from the cliffs above the Sacramento River and then rain downÂinto the water. It’s composed of two primary clusters of spring-fed waterfalls, which reach about 50 feet high and 150 feet wide. The presence of the river beneath the falls enhances the scene and makes for one of the prettiest sights in the Shasta area. There are numerous springs feeding the falls so they are great year-round.
RELATED: 13 Waterfalls in One Weekend: Northern California’s World-Famous Waterfall Loop
The problem with the waterfall is it’s very hard to access for hikers. The only way to access the falls is by trespassing along an active railway, and visitors must walk within a few feet of passing trains. Several years ago, a sightseer was struck by a train and severely injured.
There is currently a plan for a new trailhead to allow hikers safe and legal access to the falls. The plan for the trail, which has made significant progress over the past 18 months, would place a trailhead at the end of the Hedge Creek Falls trail and continue to a newly-constructed pedestrian suspension bridge across the Sacramento River. The trail would continue north through a forested area below the train tracks and along the river, ending at Mossbrae Falls.
Until then, getting to the falls remains dangerous, and technically illegal. Let’s clear the air about Mossbrae Falls once and for all.
It’s no secret that Dunsmuir’s premiere waterfall is being marketed by the town. In fact, last time I visited Dunsmuir a prominent city council member urged me to visit the falls. As I spoke to him, and other locals, they made it very clear about the legality of the waterfall. People have criticized us in the past for “promoting” illegal hikes, but the bode of confidence from locals inspired me to write the exact hike to the falls.
In order to access the waterfall, you have to trespass…twice. First, you will do a quick walk through the Shasta Retreat, which is private property. From all accounts from locals and city officials, Shasta Retreat is okay with people walking through their property, as long as you park outside the area and be respectful as you walk through.
Then you will approach and hike down the railroad track for about 1.2 miles, which is technically trespassing on Union Pacific’s property. I spoke with a Union Pacific official last time I was there, and he told me that they openly allow Mossbrae Falls hikers as long as you stay safe and keep the area clean. Yes, history has shown us the hike along the railroad tracks is dangerous, but there are ways to mitigate the risk.

Here’s the full description of the tricky hike to Mossbrae Falls:
In Dunsmuir, drive down to the north end of Dunsmuir Avenue where you’ll see the sign for Shasta Retreat on Scarlet Avenue. Find parking in a legal area on the far side of the road to avoid any issues. You will walk down the hill of Scarlet Avenue which will eventually veer right and turn into Cave Avenue. Follow the road right until it turns left onto a small bridge across the Sacramento River, which will lead you to the railroad tracks.
Take a right on the tracks and you will hike on the loose rocks for a little over a mile. Be sure to stay on the right side of the tracks which provides more than enough room to hike the “trail.” Some parts are a little tighter than others, so just always be aware if a train might be coming. I like to watch a train pass by and go right afterwards, minimizing the chances of encountering a train. In my experience, trains move very slow through this area.
A little past the 3/4 marker, you’ll approach a bridge with a rock that reads “Mossbrae” – that’s where you look to the right and will find trails down to the falls.
You’ve probably seen photos of the waterfall online, but nothing can prepare you for the experience you’ll find in person. It’s absolutely gorgeous and much bigger than you’ll expect. There are plenty of areas to lounge near the falls and bring your fishing rod to catch some of those beautiful rainbow trout in the Sacramento River.
Are we going to get criticized for posting this article? Of course we will. But if people are going to visit the waterfalls, I want to make sure they do it right. Be respectful of the Shasta Retreat. Be safe on the railroad tracks. And know the dangers before you go.
The future trailhead from Hedge Creek Falls to Mossbrae Falls is going to be an incredible hike with two awesome waterfalls. But until the trail is finished, visitors will have to deal with the tricky trek to the falls.
Greetings from Los angeles! I’m bored to death at work so I decided to check out your site on my iphone during lunch break. I really like the knowledge you present here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home. I’m amazed at how quick your blog loaded on my cell phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, very good site!
Hi! Someone in my Myspace group shared this site with us so I came to take a look. I’m definitely enjoying the information. I’m book-marking and will be tweeting this to my followers! Great blog and brilliant style and design.
????? ??????????? ???????
Great article! We will be linking to this great article on our site. Keep up the good writing.
Spot on with this write-up, I seriously believe this site needs much
more attention. I’ll probably be back again to
read more, thanks for the information!
Let me give you a thumbs up man. Can I tell you exactly how
to do amazing values and if you want to seriously get to hear and also share valuable info about how to become
a millionaire yalla lready know follow me my
fellow commenters!.
It is appropriate time to make some plans for the future and it is time to be happy. I have read this post and if I could I wish to suggest you few interesting things or suggestions. Perhaps you could write next articles referring to this article. I want to read more things about it!
I’d like to find out more? I’d love to find out more details.
Hi, I do believe this is an excellent website. I stumbledupon it 😉 I will return once again since I book-marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to help other people.
Hi there, I found your blog via Google whilst searching for a comparable matter, your site got here up, it seems to be good. I have bookmarked it in my google bookmarks.
Since the admin of this web site is working, no uncertainty very soon it will be well-known, due to its quality contents.
I don’t know if it’s just me or if everyone else experiencing problems with your website. It seems like some of the text on your posts are running off the screen. Can someone else please comment and let me know if this is happening to them too? This could be a problem with my browser because I’ve had this happen before. Appreciate it
What’s up, yes this article is actually nice and I have learned lot of things from it concerning blogging. thanks.
Excellent post. I’m going through a few of these issues as well..
I must thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this website. I’m hoping to see the same high-grade blog posts from you in the future as well. In fact, your creative writing abilities has inspired me to get my very own blog now 😉
At this moment I am going to do my breakfast, once having my breakfast coming yet again to read additional news.
Hey! I realize this is kind of off-topic but I had to ask. Does running a well-established blog like yours take a lot of work? I’m completely new to writing a blog but I do write in my diary everyday. I’d like to start a blog so I will be able to share my own experience and views online. Please let me know if you have any ideas or tips for new aspiring bloggers. Appreciate it!
Excellent post. I was checking continuously this blog and I am impressed! Very useful information particularly the last part 🙂 I care for such info a lot. I was seeking this particular info for a long time. Thank you and good luck.
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d without a doubt donate to this superb blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this site with my Facebook group. Chat soon!
Hi, i think that i saw you visited my blog so i got here to go back the want?.I am trying to find things to improve my site!I guess its ok to use some of your concepts!!
Good day! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site? I’m getting fed up of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be great if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Hiya! Quick question that’s completely off topic. Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My site looks weird when viewing from my iphone. I’m trying to find a theme or plugin that might be able to correct this problem. If you have any suggestions, please share. With thanks!
It’s hard to find educated people about this topic, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
Good answer back in return of this issue with firm arguments and explaining everything concerning that.
I enjoy what you guys are up too. Such clever work and exposure! Keep up the fantastic works guys I’ve added you guys to my personal blogroll.
Link exchange is nothing else but it is simply placing the other person’s blog link on your page at proper place and other person will also do same in favor of you.
Undeniably believe that which you stated. Your favorite justification appeared to be on the net the simplest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I definitely get irked while people consider worries that they plainly do not know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and also defined out the whole thing without having side effect , people can take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thanks
Have you ever considered about including a little bit more than just your articles? I mean, what you say is valuable and all. However just imagine if you added some great pictures or video clips to give your posts more, “pop”! Your content is excellent but with images and video clips, this site could certainly be one of the very best in its niche. Terrific blog!
I love what you guys are up too. Such clever work and coverage! Keep up the good works guys I’ve you guys to my personal blogroll.
hi!,I really like your writing so so much! percentage we communicate more approximately your post on AOL? I need an expert in this area to solve my problem. May be that is you! Taking a look forward to peer you.
Hi, i think that i saw you visited my blog so i came to ?return the favor?.I am trying to find things to improve my site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!
I am truly thankful to the owner of this site who has shared this wonderful piece of writing at at this place.
An impressive share! I have just forwarded this onto a colleague who was doing a little research on this. And he in fact bought me breakfast because I discovered it for him… lol. So let me reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending time to discuss this matter here on your site.
Great post but I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this topic? I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more. Cheers!
I like it when people come together and share opinions. Great website, continue the good work!
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you writing this post and the rest of the site is also really good.
I like it when folks come together and share thoughts. Great blog, keep it up!
naturally like your website however you need to test the spelling on quite a few of your posts. Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very bothersome to tell the truth on the other hand I will certainly come back again.
This blog was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something that helped me. Many thanks!
I visited multiple sites but the audio quality for audio songs current at this website is in fact excellent.
Great post.
The other day, while I was at work, my sister stole my iPad and tested to see if it can survive a twenty five foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My iPad is now broken and she has 83 views. I know this is completely off topic but I had to share it with someone!
Hi to every body, it’s my first go to see of this website; this website includes remarkable and really good stuff designed for readers.
Thank you a bunch for sharing this with all people you really understand what you are talking approximately! Bookmarked. Please also seek advice from my web site =). We will have a link change contract among us
you are actually a good webmaster. The site loading velocity is incredible. It sort of feels that you are doing any unique trick. In addition, The contents are masterpiece. you have performed a wonderful task in this topic!
Keep on working, great job!
?????????? ??????? ??????????? ?????? ? ?????? ??????? ??????
Can I just say what a relief to find somebody who really knows what they’re talking about on the net. You definitely know how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More and more people need to read this and understand this side of the story. It’s surprising you aren’t more popular because you surely have the gift.
I was very happy to find this website. I want to to thank you for your time just for this wonderful read!! I definitely loved every bit of it and I have you bookmarked to see new things on your web site.
Do you have a spam issue on this website; I also am a blogger, and I was curious about your situation; many of us have created some nice procedures and we are looking to trade strategies with other folks, be sure to shoot me an e-mail if interested.
Hey! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site? I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be awesome if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Ahaa, its nice conversation concerning this post here at this website, I have read all that, so now me also commenting here.
Link exchange is nothing else but it is only placing the other person’s website link on your page at proper place and other person will also do same for you.
Appreciation to my father who informed me concerning this webpage, this weblog is really remarkable.
Hello, just wanted to say, I enjoyed this article. It was inspiring. Keep on posting!
I all the time used to read post in news papers but now as I am a user of internet so from now I am using net for posts, thanks to web.
Howdy! This is my 1st comment here so I just wanted to give a quick shout out and tell you I truly enjoy reading through your articles. Can you suggest any other blogs/websites/forums that deal with the same subjects? Thanks!
I constantly spent my half an hour to read this webpage’s articles daily along with a cup of coffee.
I’m not sure why but this web site is loading extremely slow for me. Is anyone else having this issue or is it a problem on my end? I’ll check back later and see if the problem still exists.
I was able to find good info from your blog articles.
What’s up, yup this post is actually good and I have learned lot of things from it about blogging. thanks.
This post provides clear idea in favor of the new people of blogging, that in fact how to do blogging.
I go to see each day some web sites and websites to read articles or reviews, except this weblog gives quality based posts.
I know this web site provides quality dependent posts and other data, is there any other web site which provides such stuff in quality?
Hi, i think that i saw you visited my web site so i got here to go back the prefer?.I am trying to find things to improve my website!I guess its ok to use some of your ideas!!
I enjoy what you guys are up too. This type of clever work and coverage! Keep up the excellent works guys I’ve added you guys to my blogroll.
Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!
This is my first time pay a visit at here and i am truly happy to read all at alone place.
Article writing is also a fun, if you know then you can write otherwise it is difficult to write.
I visited multiple websites except the audio quality for audio songs present at this web site is truly fabulous.
My programmer is trying to persuade me to move to .net from PHP. I have always disliked the idea because of the expenses. But he’s tryiong none the less. I’ve been using Movable-type on a variety of websites for about a year and am anxious about switching to another platform. I have heard very good things about blogengine.net. Is there a way I can transfer all my wordpress content into it? Any kind of help would be really appreciated!
I will right away clutch your rss as I can not in finding your email subscription link or newsletter service. Do you have any? Please permit me recognise so that I may just subscribe. Thanks.
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d most certainly donate to this brilliant blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this site with my Facebook group. Chat soon!
Thank you, I have recently been searching for information approximately this topic for a while and yours is the best I have found out so far. However, what about the conclusion? Are you positive about the source?
Hello! I could have sworn I’ve been to this blog before but after browsing through a few of the posts I realized it’s new to me. Anyhow, I’m definitely happy I discovered it and I’ll be bookmarking it and checking back regularly!
First off I want to say wonderful blog! I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind. I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your thoughts before writing. I have had a difficult time clearing my mind in getting my thoughts out. I do enjoy writing but it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are wasted just trying to figure out how to begin. Any suggestions or tips? Cheers!
You really make it seem so easy with your presentation however I in finding this topic to be really something which I feel I might never understand. It sort of feels too complicated and very large for me. I am taking a look forward in your next post, I will try to get the grasp of it!
I visited multiple websites except the audio quality for audio songs present at this website is actually marvelous.
I’m really enjoying the design and layout of your blog. It’s a very easy on the eyes which makes it much more enjoyable for me to come here and visit more often. Did you hire out a designer to create your theme? Great work!
I’ve been exploring for a little for any high-quality articles or blog posts in this kind of area . Exploring in Yahoo I eventually stumbled upon this site. Reading this info So i’m satisfied to express that I have a very just right uncanny feeling I came upon exactly what I needed. I so much certainly will make certain to don?t put out of your mind this web site and give it a look on a continuing basis.
Wonderful website you have here but I was curious if you knew of any user discussion forums that cover the same topics talked about in this article? I’d really love to be a part of group where I can get opinions from other knowledgeable individuals that share the same interest. If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Cheers!
Hello there! This is my first visit to your blog! We are a group of volunteers and starting a new initiative in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us useful information to work on. You have done a extraordinary job!