Bear Gulch Cave - Pinnacles National Monument

This is a great family hike at Pinnacles National Monument.

Visitors can start at the Bear Gulch Day Use Area and hike up a moderately inclined trail to the entrance of Bear Gulch Cave. The hike to the reservoir is a short hike of 1.3 miles (one way), but it is action packed.

The trail pleasantly meanders past a creek, between the rocks and through the trees. In about twenty minutes we arrive at the entrance of Bear Gulch Cave.

Inside the cave we hear water trickling and light can be seen streaming down onto the trail in several sections. As we move into some dark passages the sound of rushing water becomes louder. Then the cave opens up into a large room. A waterfall rushes next to us as we climb steps that take us further into the cave.

Depending on the season the upper section of the cave might be closed to help protect a sensitive species of bat and their young. In our video this section of the cave is open to explorers here a flashlight is required. We sometimes have to squat down and duck walk through several narrow sections while wading in ankle-deep water. For an eight year-old (and adults too) this is a lot of fun.

Soon we emerge from the darkness and walk below house-sized boulders that are jammed into the canyon above us. Then we see a staircase chiseled from the rock itself. We walk up and are greeted by a small reservoir. Walking around the reservoir we look back at the dam and several amazing rock features that rise into the sky.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• pinnacles
• national
• monument
• bear
• gulch
• cave
• hike
• explore
• california
• glyphguy
• family
• outdoor

[GBRoberts6]

Im going to check this out tomorrow!

[Iheartjustinbieberx1]

Ahh iwent there 4 a field trip with my class like 2 weeks ago mayb? :] lol i dont remember

[BuckhornGuy57]

Very nice. Thanks for sharing.