.5 miles. Moderate trail with a few steep spots.
Natural swimming pool at Agua Caliente Falls.

The natural swimming pool below Agua Caliente Falls has always been the most popular hiking destination in the Lost Valley area. Scouts have been hiking down here to swim since at least 1965. The canyon itself has been a natural route of travel in and out of Lost Valley since Indian days. Early maps call the creek that runs through it Lost Valley Creek. The Bergmans called the area Dark Canyon. Today the creek is known as Agua Caliente Creek because it comes out near Warner Hot Springs (Agua Caliente means “hot water” in Spanish).

Several different trails have been cut over the years to reach the Falls. The current trail--called simply the New Trail--was originally laid out in 1987 and actually made use of parts of several older trails in its upper section. The lower section has been gradually improved over the last ten years, and most of the trail is well laid out and easy to follow.

The trailhead is located in the spillway of the dam at the bottom of Agua Caliente Lake. It begins up to your left.

0.0 Trailhead. The trail turns right along top of the spillway and the creek.

0.05 The trail drops down closer to the creek for a moment, then climbs back up. At the top is a good overlook down into Lost Valley’s own little “grand canyon”-- the deep cut of Agua Caliente Creek.

0.10 The trail turns to the left and drops down a small rock outcrop.

0.15 The trail crosses the top of a tributary canyon which runs down to your right into Agua Caliente Creek. Stay with the trail, which continues in a southwesterly direction.

0.20 The trail crosses another tributary canyon that often has water in it, then climbs up onto the ridge and turns to the right. The top of the ridge is quite rocky, so remember to watch for snakes.

0.25 The trail turns right down into the next tributary canyon, crosses it, and continues downhill on the opposite side. As the grade becomes steeper there is one single switchback, then the trail continues down along the slope towards the bottom of the main canyon, paralleling Agua Caliente Creek.

0.4 Cross Agua Caliente Creek and enter the Cedar Grove. This makes a nice rest spot, and larger groups may want to use this as a waiting area when dividing up to visit the falls. The trail turns left and crosses a log bridge, then continues down canyon. On your left as you cross the bridge, tiger lilies are sometimes in bloom.

0.5 The sound of falling water says that you have arrived. The trail turns to the left just where an old fallen cedar tree crosses it, and drops down a steep rocky cut. Watch your step as you scramble down here, the rocks are slick. There is room at the bottom for perhaps 15 people.

The falls are located at one of the narrowest points in canyon, where all the water in the creek is forced to the surface and pours through one 18-inch cleft in the rocks. The depth of the pool below changes from year to year as it is filled and emptied of sand by winter storms. When completely flushed out, the pool is about eight feet deep at the very center. The bottom is cone-shaped, with a ledge below the waterline on the near side. Always check the bottom first, not just for depth, but to find any sharp rocks or branches. There are two other shallow pools downstream from the main pool. There is also a shallow pool at the top of the falls, which can be reached by climbing back up to the trail and cutting back a little ways, then over.