Salmon Creek Falls, Waterfall in Los Padres National Forest, California, US

Salmon Creek Falls is a 120-foot (36 m) waterfall on Salmon Creek in the Santa Lucia Range, within the Monterey Ranger District of Los Padres National Forest and the Silver Peak Wilderness. Above the main drop the creek pools behind several large boulders, curves around them, then cascades 12 feet (3.7 m) down a steep cliff into a shallow pool before continuing southwest toward the Pacific Ocean.

Salmon Creek Falls lies within the Monterey Ranger District of Los Padres National Forest and the Silver Peak Wilderness, on the southwestern slope of the Santa Lucia Range. The falls sit about 2.9 miles northwest of Ragged Point along California State Route 1, with the village of Gorda roughly 6.5 miles farther northwest. Salmon Creek drops over a series of small cataracts for 1.4 miles before the main cascade.

Salmon Creek Falls sits in the Silver Peak Wilderness, and the Salmon Creek Trail that climbs past the falls is a well-used route for backpackers heading into that wilderness. The name comes from the creek itself, which drops toward the Pacific through the Santa Lucia Range.

This waterfall is reachable by a short walk from Highway 1 with parking located at the trailhead. The route is straightforward and does not require special equipment, though the ground can be slippery after rain.

The unpaved trail from Highway 1, about 0.3 mi (0.48 km) long, ends at a viewpoint beside large boulders but does not reach the base of the falls; getting there means scrambling over a pair of boulders. Above, the Salmon Creek Trail branches east and approaches the head of the falls at a higher elevation, a route backpackers use to enter Silver Peak Wilderness.