Bring a wetsuit during March/ April. It's cold but beautiful. The family enjoyed it and not too far from the camp site Note it does require some jumping, balance climbing and getting your feet/shoes wet. I did it with my girls ages 8-13 years. read more

Big Sur River Gorge Trail starts between campsite #111 and #112.  Go upstream on the right of the river until you cannot, then wade across the river to continue on the left side. Great fun tackling boulders and fallen trees.    Dress to climb and swim.  I saw a family hiking with an elderly grandma and thought to myself, If she can do it, anybody who is willing can do it.  We came in the beginning of Aug 2020, when camping capacity was halved due to Covid.  But this trail was still super crowded when we arrived about noon.   Wafer is very clear with Steelhead Trouts in there, so naturally it was cold.  I jumped from rocks and swam around anyway, figuring that it will never turn into a hot spring no matter how long I wait. read more

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I love, love this place! Specially during summer time, Make sure to go bright and early so you can enjoy some alone time, This spot got so much attention and gets very crowded, Specially on a nice hot day. I love packing a snack to have after a nice swim. But please, please be considerate and PICK UP YOUR trash!!!! If you see trash please bring it with you.. let's not forget to keep our rivers clean and everyone can enjoy the beauty of this place. read more

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Winter 2019 - Our camping site was right next to the gorge trailhead. The small trail to the river was easy. What is confusing is where the actual swimming hole is located. I suspect most people don't make it to the actual gorge and falsely assume one of the smaller pools is what everyone is talking about. My best advice would be to keep going up river and "you'll know it when you see it". To get to the real swimming hole you'll have to climb boulders and walk over fallen logs and hop from rock to rock to finally make it.. Your hiking experience will depend greatly on river conditions. I kinda fell in the water because a log I was walking over began to sink. Make sure your cell phone is properly stored in your backpack. Once there you'll see a large swimming hole and a small beach. Totally worth the perilous trek to get there.. - Water is always cold - Not for unsupervised children read more

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The hike was amazing--definitely difficult, but so worth it! The water was super cool, and it made the challenge totally worthwhile. It was very tough, though, but we stayed safe throughout. read more

A nice swimming hole that is not too difficult to reach. It is inside the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. You will have to pay $10.00 to get into the park. The swimming hole is located about 0.6 miles from Lot #3. Park and follow the paved path until you reach a plank bridge. Cross the bridge and go through the campground until you reach the trail. Keep to the right. You will need to cross the river only once if you follow the trail on the right. The water is great year round. The swimming hole can get crowded so get there early! For some great photos see: http://swimmingholesofcalifornia.blogspot.com read more

Big Sur River Gorge - The Gorge - Hiking Near Me - Big Sur, California

If you are a Big Sur lover and love Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, then you will love this little trail. It's great! It doesn't take that long to get here and the trail/hike is not bad at all. Very easy, kids do it. The only thing is you will have to climb over some big boulders and tread through water.. COLD water but that's about it. The closer you get to the swimming holes, the colder it gets. Hubby and I tried to do this hike in March but we had our dog, climbing over rocks where you need two hands was a big tricky so we gave up. We returned at the end of April and made it all the way with no problems. It was a gorgeous hot day. We got there around noon and we were the 2nd ones there.. jumped off some rocks, even snorkeled for a few minutes (as long as we could being that the water was so cold), there is lots of baby silver head bass (or something like that), got some good pics and good videos, then the people started showing up about an hour or so after got there.. a few groups of people that don't stay very long, they jump off rocks, drink a few beers then leave. There was a beer can at the shore which immediately irritated me because I am a huge nature lover. A place this beautiful should NOT be trashed in such ways. Anyway, the water is very very cold but feels absolutely great once you jump in. One of the holes with the TWO rocks, was a bit shallow, maybe 6 feet or so, so I jumped from the lower rock and hit the ground. I swam/snorkeled through the 2nd area where it's much deeper and colder, jumped off that rock with no problem and never hit the bottom. I'd say it was 12 feet deep or so. Lots of fish and it was great. I would definitely return... Oh and P.S. The review by Timothy J. is the way I was able to find it. Perfect directions. read more

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Okay, the way to the actual swimming hole was more difficult than I thought. We were climbing through rocks, boulders, and logs. However, we made it to the swimming hole! The water is freezing and numbing especially when we had to cross the river to get to the other side. We didn't want to go through the water because it was so freezing, so we had to strategically go around the river. I would say that if you like challenges and climbing through boulders, this place is for you! The area and seclusion is really nice though, and the rock formations around the swimming hole are fantastic! read more

Don't ever come here. It's very dangerous to reach and a man lost his life in the creek by the large rock.

This trail was one of the most fun I've ever had. Literally climbing through rocks and boulders was exhilarating. Don't be afraid to climb into the water. I would highly recommend bringing a swim suit. Trust me, you won't feel out-of-place, many others also had on swimsuits. The water is very clear and mind-numbingly cold at first but after a while you get used to it. Once you reach the swimming hole, which wasn't too far away, you are welcome to take a dip and swim around. There are even places to safely jump off of and into the swimming hole. I saw many big, balky men safely jump into the swimming hole without a mishap. Even during the drought the water was still pretty deep, going at around 7 to 8 ft at its deepest point. What I loved the most about this trail was that once you reach the swimming hole, behind it there is a small cave with water pouring down from a good-sized crevice that was possible to climb through and more spectacular views of the river. This trail is a must-see and not too populated. It was an extremely enjoyable experience. Also, if you are not into the whole climbing experience, as my boyfriend and I were hiking back along the river, we saw many groups of people circled around chatting in beach chairs inside the river. read more

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Had an awesome time at the swimming hole. The cliff jumping spot isn't too great cause it's not too high and over looks some pointy rocks...but there's a lot to explore. The waters a little chilly even in summer and the pool ca get a little over crowded, so make sure u get there early..it's quite easy to find....follow the river on the side where the campsite is...it's only a 10 to 15min hike. read more

To avoid parking fees, we parked along the freeway and walked into the park. It wasn't far to parking lot 3, maybe 0.6 miles. From there, we followed the other instructions in the other reviews to The Gorge. The trail starts near the front, not back of parking lot 3. When the trail reaches the river, definitely take the two plank bridge across to the other side and head into the campsite so you can minimize how many rocks you'll climb (be forewarned, there are a decent amount if you choose to go all the way up to the beach). Follow the concrete path in there in the upstream direction. When you get to the other sign marked for the gorge and proceed down that path, the first thing you'll encounter is a nice and wide, slow moving place to play in the water for families and young kids. You're not at the gorge yet though. You'll have to keep walking up, cross the river once, climb a bunch of trees, boulders, walk and climb some more before you see the gorge. Then you can cross the river again to get to the sandy beach everyone puts there stuff at. The gorge is beautiful, with clear waters deep enough in some areas to swim in. It's a small place, but worth the trip if you have the company to spend it there with. There's a rope people use to climb up onto the rock face to jump off of but that is definitely not advised given the shallow drought waters. The water's maybe only 6 feet in the deepest areas. read more