Millard Falls — Attraction in Altadena

Here's the Rundown:

When you're winding through the road towards the trails, you'll be driving on for a hot minute. Your passenger will start to question if the road even leads to anywhere and if you even have the right directions. The truth is: you do. And you can cite this review as a source. Just keep driving and you'll eventually see a trail head and another road that leads even more down the mountain. If you want the Millard trails which goes towards the waterfall, keep driving down.

[TIP:] DRIVE SLOW. I don't know who taught y'all how to drive, but some people here drive down the narrow winding roads like they own the road. DUDE. The road is so narrow and it winds around the mountain. You can't see if there's incoming cars. Drive SLOW. And some people even drive in the middle of the narrow lanes. Are you kidding?

Eventually, you'll make it to the parking lot. Most likely, it will be empty. Don't freak out. There isn't a serial killer there.. probably. When you leave your car and start going towards the start of the trail, you'll see a bunch of signs. The ones that stuck out to me where " If you encounter a bear...." and "Parking passes must be displayed."

Obviously, none of us want to get eaten by a bear. Don't worry. I'm pretty sure there are no bears.. probably. And obviously none of us have parking passes and we don't want to get a ticket. Don't worry, I think you'll be okay. Everyone there didn't have a parking pass, so I'm pretty sure that sign is bull.

Just go.

So... As you go through the trail, you'll be walking alongside the gorgeous stream that trails to God knows where. As long as you stick by the stream, you shouldn't get lost. If you do get lost, then youre an i--.

As you follow the trail, you will realize that the trail gets cut off all the freaking time. Yes, you have to cross the stream. You have to step on those rocks to cross to other side and continue the trail.

When you cross the stream, I cannot stress how careful you need to be. It's like 2 or 3 feet wide and maybe 8 inches deep, but I mean you still have to be careful. Maybe wear pants with zippered pockets so your phone doesn't fall out of your pocket.

Unless you're a genius, your foot will most likely end up in the water. Just give in to it. It's inevitable. By the end of the hike, your shoes will be drenched. Sorry not sorry.

When you reach the waterfall, it's gorgeous. I went after it rained so it was really lively. There were two females that took Instagram pictures for like 20 minutes, and they even brought bathing suits.

Let me tell you. The pool of water that the waterfall fills is not that deep. You can't swim in it. It was probably maybe like a few inches taller than my ankle. But if you want to take cool pictures in the water -- which is freezing by the way -- then bring some...

Short hike for a really rad pay off so if you only want to hike maybe 3 mi total (there and back - didn’t loop around) this is the hike for you. It isn’t an easy hike necessarily but it is short. there are rocks to climb throughout the trail As well as stumps/ trees that may have fallen that you’ll need to climb or walk across to arrive to the water fall. I know you can bring dogs on this hike but I’m not sure I would personally bring my smaller dog(s) here because it may be hard for them to navigate up the first step unless you pick them up and they are trained to sit and wait while you climb up so it’s all just kinda depending on your dog and their abilities to rock climb I guess lol I also noticed they have camping near this trail and people may not have their dog on a leash so be careful if your dog isn’t the most friendly guy or gal…. Also mosquitos come out around 4:30/5 pm in may-july this year (2022) so I’m thinking if you’re camping over night or just coming in the the late afternoon bring bug spray! Wearing bright colors may also attract the bees that hangout near here they wound up in my shoe! And they started appearing while I was eating my lunch as a heads up so they’ll pop up if you have sandwich in your hand...

Love this hike cause it’s only .5 (from the big parking lot).

The parking pass required (though I’m not sure how often they check because a lot of people park without passes) can be purchased from the Chevron near Arcadia REI (I went to REI and they said they haven’t gotten Adventure Passes in 7 months so he told me Chevron has them or a ranger station). I have no idea where the ranger station is so I went to the Chevron and it’s only $5!!

There is parking available on the cliffside but you have to walk all the way down a long hill. I recommend just parking in the big lot.

The hike is pretty much shaded most of the way. It is a lot of crossing rocks and water. In the beginning, there is one “rock wall” to climb up.

There is a bathroom at the camp site. I would hold it if I could because that bathroom did not look clean.

When it rains a lot, the waterfall gets bigger. I have found salamanders and toads here with my husband before. Today, I found a praying mantis and huge daddy long leg spider nests!! Absolutely terrifying, watch out for them on the rocks! They...