Phantom Falls or Coal Canyon Falls is a waterfall at Coal Canyon near Oroville, California, within the

North Table Mountain Ecological Reserve __NOTOC__ The North Table Mountain Ecological Reserve is a nature reserve of located three miles (5 km) north of Oroville, in Butte County, northern California. The land was acquired by the state in October, 1993. Ecology The reserve prot ...

. The waterfall is highhttp://www.waterfallswest.com/waterfall.php?id=205 Phantom Falls entry on ''Waterfalls West'' and runs off the edge of Coal Canyon, in front of a

grotto A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high ti ...

. A small pool at the bottom is home to a

California newt The California newt or orange-bellied newt (''Taricha torosa''), is a species of newt endemic to California, in the Western United States. Its adult length can range from . Its skin produces the potent toxin tetrodotoxin. Subspecies ''Taricha ...

subspecies, the Coastal Range newt. As a seasonal waterfall, Phantom Falls runs only during the rainy months, late autumn to early spring. It is named Phantom Falls because it disappears during the dry season. There is no trail to the waterfall, although a parking lot on Cherokee Road provides access for hikers.http://www.chicohiking.org/ValleyFoothill/Phantom-Falls.htm Phantom Falls entry on ''Chico Hiking'', includes a map of the area It is about from the parking lot to the waterfall, which is visible from the rim of Coal Canyon. A strenuous downhill hike then ends at the bottom of the waterfall. The falls can also be reached from Coal Canyon Road at the bottom of Coal Canyon, a hike of about the same distance but longer and more strenuous, over rocky terrain. The shaft of an abandoned gold mine in the grotto behind the falls dates to the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

. Today, there is no

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

there, but research still takes place in the mineshaft. Entering the mineshaft is difficult but not prohibited.

References

{{Reflist, 30em Landforms of Butte County, California Waterfalls of California