Conditions:Arroyo Seco Gorge (Big Sur)-20160706010918

Latest:	17 Aug 2013 (11 yrs, 9 mos ago)

Reported by:	CC (93 reports)
Quality:	Ok
Waterflow:	Swimming
Wetsuit:	Thin wetsuit
Water temperature:
Difficulty:	Normal
Time:	7 hours

Team: 15 people with experience level Brand new to Beginner

Trip report URL:

Comments: maybe in the 3-5cfs USGS range, lower water flow and warm 80F day, some folks had shortie wetsuit and some had coolmax base layers, mostly tennis shoes, flotation used: tubes, PFD, empty bottles with air in backpacks, even with low flow still long corridors of swimming, waterfall was slimey and people slipping even with assist rope

All condition reports

Date	Quality	Waterflow	Wetsuit	Difficulty	Time	Team	Reported by
27 Aug 2023	Unknown						Blackberrysghost (1 reports)
Comment: Most of the park is closed including the two roads that would make this accessible possibly reopening arroyo seco rd after the 31st of this month
5 Jul 2020	Ok	Moderate Low	Thin wetsuit	Easy	7 hours	8 people Brand new to Advanced	Rodtel314 (36 reports)
Comment: Fun day trip! Went with a group more or less from SFBC, and took my parents! It was hot. Also the day use parking filled up, but we wanted to go to the Gorge parking, and had to explicitly specify this to the ranger to be let in. We took 4 hours going up and back to the waterfall, and then realized it was 4pm, so didn't do the lower section. The waterfall flow was challenging for the first person (me), but then I tossed the rope so everyone else could swim in to the side you can climb up. And the top is quite slippery.
28 Sep 2019	Good	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Nontechnical	7 hours	5 people Beginner to Advanced	Rodtel314 (36 reports)
Comment: Had a great day in the Arroyo Seco! Started by heading up to the waterfall and playing along the way, we had no difficulty using the handline to climb up past the falls. Got back to the bridge and decided to keep going downstream. The canyon is mellow for a bit then turns very beautiful and slotty — highly recommended! You can hike up after this section, but we continued creek walking downstream to the day use area. We watched a group of 16-yr-olds climb up a sloping diagonal in the rock to a flat 1’ square ledge DCR and cleanly jump ~25ft into a large deep pool shortly before the end of this section and tried it ourselves, it was a highlight of the day.
13 May 2019	Good	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Easy	6 hours	9 people Expert to Beginner	Dominik (64 reports)
25 May 2018	Great	Moderate	Thin wetsuit	Special challenges	3 days	9 people Brand new to Advanced	Kevee (1 reports)
Comment: We started from Escondito campground and were expecting to camp halfway through, but had a dog get injured. Built a raft for him using a tube and sleeping pad. Took three days. There are lots of great camping beaches after about mile 4. Inner tubes are highly recommended to maximize fun, after the first few miles with talus falls and big rocks, the river gets much deeper and has fun little rapids to tube down. The approach to the bolts above the waterfall DCR is a little sketchy. Someone abandoned a piton and a rope on the approach, but it is no longer usable. The ledge below the bolts was fine, and one bolt was in good shape while the other was fair.
28 Apr 2018	Great	Moderate	Thin wetsuit	Nontechnical	5 hours	3 people Advanced to Expert	Dominik (64 reports)
17 Apr 2016	Good	Swimming	Full wetsuit	Normal	5 hours	4 people	CC (93 reports)
Comment: * USGS & Camp Host said the flow was currently at 7.2ft and the outside air was about 78F. In a 4/3 full wetsuit it felt fine but was warm when scrambling on the ledges out of the water. We did the route from the Arroyo Seco Campground bottom to the waterfall. Going upstream, the water was moving quickly in some spots so the swims required some efforts and when possible scrambled on the ledges out of the water. The pools and swimming sections were full and required long swims. The waterfall was flowing very fast so going up it was not an option and most likely will need a new assist rope once the water slows down. With this flow, the waterfall is creating a hydraulic that is pushing the water away and could trap someone on the other side of the pool. Going downstream waterfall to bridge; fun with the flow of the water and through the pools. Sections with fast water and rocks can be avoided by bouldering on the shores. Going downstream below the bridge and sandy beach: the shape of the rocks and twist of the stream create some hydraulics with some tricky sections. Many can be avoided by bouldering but there are a few that required floating in the turbulent. Special care is needed as these sections are twisty with rocks and understanding the hydraulics is important. There are a few possible exits below the bridge. There is an exit at the beach where locals go swim and at the rocky ledges below the cave areas and after that it is the campground.
17 Aug 2013	Ok	Swimming	Thin wetsuit	Normal	7 hours	15 people Brand new to Beginner	CC (93 reports)
Comment: maybe in the 3-5cfs USGS range, lower water flow and warm 80F day, some folks had shortie wetsuit and some had coolmax base layers, mostly tennis shoes, flotation used: tubes, PFD, empty bottles with air in backpacks, even with low flow still long corridors of swimming, waterfall was slimey and people slipping even with assist rope