Cataract Falls, Marin County. Photo: Kevin Etter, CC Despite this year’s scant rainfall, waterfalls are once again flowing in Northern California, and you don’t want to miss the show. Cataract Falls on the north slope of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County is probably the best-known waterfall in the Bay Area, and for good reason. It gets really big after a spring rain, sprouting up to nine silvery cascades, some more than 50 feet high, plunging purposefully down the Cataract Creek streambed. The surrounding forest, with its moss- and lichen-covered rocks, ferny ground cover, gnarly oaks and sentinel redwoods, can seem an enchanted place, especially just after a rain. Read more.