Redding Included in List of 8 Waterfalls in U.S. Worth Traveling For

While you may have seen some of America’s best-known waterfalls already (we’re talking Niagara, Yosemite, and Havasu in the Grand Canyon), what follows are eight other favorites from coast to coast, including Redding’s own McArthur-Burney Falls, all worth a stop on your next road trip.

As spring blooms loom and snowpacks begin to melt, we’re entering what many nature lovers say is their favorite time of year: waterfall season. From thundering cascades to fairytale trickles, every waterfall has its own personality. Some are tall and skinny, streaming from precipitously high cliffs into churning whirlpools below. Others are gauzier, fanning out across staircases of rock and moss. You can walk behind some falls and climb on others when they’re frozen solid in winter. While you may have seen some of America’s best-known waterfalls already (we’re talking Niagara, Yosemite, and Havasu in the Grand Canyon), what follows are eight other favorites from coast to coast, all worth a stop on your next road trip.

Burney Falls in Redding, California

President Theodore Roosevelt Jr. dubbed Burney Falls, a 129-foot cascade in Northern California’s McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” When you observe it pumping 100 million gallons of spring-fed water per day, you get why: Not only is Burney a looker, it’s easy to access. Travelers have the option of hoofing a quarter-mile path to the base or taking the one-mile Burney Falls Loop Trail to ogle the waterfall from multiple vantage points. If you like what you see, block out a few hours to explore the dozens of other falls throughout the region, including Potem Falls, a 70-footer that tumbles into a deep swimming hole, and the triple-tiered McCloud Falls, both part of scenic Shasta-Trinity National Forest.