A 23-year-old San Jose man died August 3 at the Garden of Eden swimming hole in Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park in Felton.
Park rangers said the man was intoxicated and was climbing the rock cliffs that surround the twin pools of the San Lorenzo River at the swim site, about two miles south of downtown Felton.
Rangers said the man had climbed a 40-foot cliff above the water, and either slipped or jumped.
The path leading from a hiking trail along the Roaring Camp Railroad line is marked with several signs warning not to jump into the water, and to not use alcohol. New signs were posted in July.
The man was knocked unconscious in the fall and could not be revived. American Medical Response, Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies and Roaring Camp Railroad workers responded along with CalFire.
Two weeks earlier, a 22-year-old woman was knocked unconscious in a fall at the swimming hole and was taken by the visiting Thomas the Tank Engine train on the Roaring Camp rail line to an emergency helicopter that took her to Stanford Medical Center. She survived the fall, authorities said.
Motorists and police have complained this summer about increased traffic and crowded parking areas along Highway 9 on weekends, as social media have increased the popularity of the Garden of Eden site, where water levels have been up since the return of normal rainfall last winter.
