About this spot
Salmon Hole is a Big Chico Creek swimming and cliff-jumping hole in Upper Bidwell Park, just downstream of Bear Hole, reached by a steep, unrailed climb down from the Yahi Trail that keeps it quieter than its neighbor. Water rushes through basalt boulders into a large, deep, rounded pool with surrounding cliffs used for jumping, though heights vary with rockfall and season. The hazard that matters most: underwater tunnels carved into the basalt, which park officials cite as responsible for most of the park's drowning deaths, and local guides explicitly advise against jumping here even though it happens regularly. Depth and flow shift seasonally. There's no legal jumping ban, but the risk here is well documented and above typical swimming-hole hazards.