Cooper Canyon Falls

 

COOPER CANYON FALLS

 

This is about an hour drive from LA, but quite beautiful and a pleasant 4-mile hike. Take the Angeles Crest Highway (2 fwy north of the 210 fwy) for about 38 miles. There is a little diner on the way (I'd guess about 25 miles up the Hwy) that you can get an adventure pass (needed to park at trailhead) and supposedly their food is also good. Turn left into Buckhorn Campground and drive through the campground for several minutes, following signs for day use parking and the Buckhart Trail. The trailhead is at the far end of the parking lot.

Follow the main trail for the majority of the hike, mostly downhill. Towards the bottom of the hill, you will cross a creek and continue uphill to a junction with the Pacific Crest trail. Turn right, AWAY FROM the Cooper Canyon Trail Campground sign. The waterfall is a short distance from here. Pay attention to the left side of the trail. There is a small path leading down to the waterfall. You will need to scramble rocks and hold on to a rope to get down to the waterfall. It isn't too difficult, just take it slow. The trail is easy to miss, so keep a lookout.

 Close-up of the Abs-stance:

Finally found the falls after hiking a bit too far past the small path:

    

And back up the trail: