Category Archives: Pacific Northwest Outdoors

SEARCHING FOR HEAVENLY LIFE IN THE GORGE – WAHKEENA FALLS LOLLIPOP

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OR A BETTER WAY TO VISIT ANGELS REST WHILE SEEING THE DEVIL AT THE SAME TIME

View from below Devils Rest looking across upper Wahkeena basin.

Showing fire sparing where the winds blew hard.

Angels Rest is one of the most popular hikes in the Columbia River Gorge. The hike lies close to Portland. The climb is reasonably easy with views back down towards Portland. It is probably too popular at times. Weekends can find a hundred or more cars parked alongside the roads. Even during the week, it pays to get to the trailhead early in the day. Overall, that hike gains 1550 feet – 472 meters – over about 2.3 miles – 3.7 kilometers. Not far away lies Wahkeena Falls.

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CIRCLES IN THE SAND EMERGING FROM TIDES IN THE GARDEN OF THE GODS – BANDON, OREGON

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Final preparations for the first appearance of the Circles in the Sand at Face Rock Beach in Bandon. Haystack Rock is in the far distance looking not unlike an Easter Island statue with face peering upward.

The lyrics for the opening of Belinda Carlisle’s “Circle in the Sand” hit song from the late 1980’s are apropos for a public art event that takes part regularly between the summer tides on the beaches in Bandon, Oregon – “Circles in the Sand”.

“Sundown all around
Walking through the summer’s end
Waves crash, baby, don’t look back
I won’t walk away again”

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REDISCOVERING HIDDEN TREASURES OF GOLDEN AND SILVER FALLS

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Waters of Glenn Creek freefalling at Golden Falls.

Hidden away in the Coast Mountains of Coos County is a small state Park preserving two of Oregon’s more spectacular waterfall treasures – Golden and Silver Falls.  The two falls are among the highest and most dramatic found west of the Cascades.  Hiding at the end of a long road which gets narrower and wilder as you travel back into the mountains, the park is one of Oregon’s lonelier state parks.  Drive to the road’s end and magic begins.

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INDIAN POINT – COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE REVEALED FROM ON HIGH

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Indian Point and magnificent view down the eastern Columbia River Gorge, 3000 feet below.

Indian Point is a basaltic spire jutting out from the main cliffs of the Nick Eaton Ridge. The Point is just east of the Oregon town of Cascade Locks. To get here, you have to hike, gaining almost 3,000 feet in just under four miles. Your rewarded with one of the best views of the Columbia River from on high on the Oregon side. A local newspaper outdoor writer rated it as the Seventh best viewpoint to hike to in the State. The view of the eastern end of the Gorge is magnificent and well worth the efforts taken to reach the point. It ranks in among the best views of the Gorge with Dog Mountain, Wind Mountain, Hamilton Mountain and Table mountain all being on the Washington side.

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WAHCLELLA FALLS – MYSTICAL MAGIC EXPRESSED IN THE GORGE

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The glory of Wahclella Falls churning under springtime skies.

Wahclella Falls, like its close neighbor, Elowah Falls, is overlooked by many visitors to the Columbia River Gorge. That is not to say the waterfall does not have visitors. It does, just not as many as you might find a little further west in “Waterfall Alley”. On this stretch of the old US Highway 30, you find the Big Five – Lautorell, Bridal Veil, Wahkeena, Multnomah and Horse Tail. There are several other waterfalls to be discovered by short hikes off the highway.

“Magic” defined as “a quality that makes something seem removed from everyday life, especially in a way that gives delight.” The waterfalls encountered here along Tanner Creek easily satisfy the definition. Even after the horrible 2017 wildfire roared through here, magic certainly remains.

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MAGIC OF THE FALLS OF MCCHORD CREEK

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An antidote to the Multnomah Falls circus.

Above Elowah Falls view across the Columbia River to Hamilton and Table Mountains.

Many waterfalls await discovery in Oregon. Some of the best are found in the Columbia River Gorge. Some are out there obvious to all while some like to hide away from prominent view. Multnomah Falls is the tallest and one of the most majestic. A large car park built in between the lanes of the freeway tries to accommodate the many who come for a visit. It is a standard by which others are measured. The Northwest Waterfall Survey rates Multnomah at 89.92 points. The falls are enchanting, but some of the magic wears off with the crowds you endure to witness. McChord Creek calls.

Driving up the Gorge on a Thursday in April, the car park at Multnomah Falls was, as normal, completely full. Five miles further east on the freeway, I-84, there were two cars parked at the Yeon State Park lot just off the freeway. Granted, two of the three trails leading out from here were closed – one from a fire in 2017 and another from a recent landslide this winter – but the one trail still open was pure enchantment.

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WATERFALLS IN THE CASCADES OF NORTHERN OREGON

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WITH A FEW OTHERS LOWER DOWN THROWN IN FOR GOOD MEASURE

North Falls
Inside the veil of North Falls.

After covering waterfalls I enjoy in Southwestern Washington and the Coast Range of northwestern Oregon, we move east of the Willamette Valley to mostly waterfalls in the northern Cascade Mountains of Oregon. Again, no way these lists are anything close to comprehensive and others may have other favorites. There is a two hour limit from Portland to help limit the number of waterfalling excursions. Also recent wildfires limit access to many waterfalls. Abiqua and Butte Falls in the foothills above Scotts Mill are prime examples. One waterfall making the list here – Shellburg – is also presently inaccessible. I included it only because I visited the falls just before the fires and wanted to show some of its former magic.

So, off to the northern Cascades – the name somehow appropriate – of Oregon to visit our first waterfalls. Links take you to the Northwest Waterfall Survey pages which give the waterfalls ratings 0-100. The highest rated waterfall in Oregon is Multnomah Falls with a rating of 89.92, so you have something to compare other waterfalls here to.

Many of these Northern Oregon waterfalls lie in the western foothills of the Cascades, best visited in winter or spring when they flow at their best.

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NEW SEASON – HAMILTON MOUNTAIN SHINING IN THE GORGE

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hamilton mtn
Looking above to Hamilton Mountain with Little Hamilton jutting out to the right from where the trail crosses underneath the Bonneville Power lines just above the trailhead.

A new year, a new season to get out once again and explore. While the Covid pandemic lurches on, people have begun to venture out again to discover what lies beyond their living room. Vaccinations are reaching into ever greater numbers of folk. Hamilton Mountain was calling to me.

SPRINGTIME IN THE GORGE

This hike was special to me on several counts. First, having hiked many of the trails in the Columbia River Gorge, I never walked this path. Second, a new mountain corgi to introduce to the mountain terrain. Third, Hamilton Mountain was the first moderately serious hike I attempted after suffering ruptures of both anterior medial collateral ligaments in a knee already arthritic from years of heavy use following an ancient football injury. So, knee brace in place, with trekking poles in hand along with one leashed mountain corgi, it was time to climb high once more.

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WATERFALLS NOT OF THE GORGE – COAST RANGE WESTERN OREGON

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PHEASANT CREEK FALLS
The double drop of Pheasant Creek Falls 124 feet altogether. One of the many Coast Range waterfalls.

The last post covered waterfalls I enjoy in southwestern Washington, mostly outside of the Columbia River Gorge, so now we move south of the River to waterfalls in the Coast Range of northwestern Oregon. Again, no way these lists are anything close to comprehensive and others may have other favorites. Plus, we have the two hour limit from Portland to help limit the waterfalling excursions. So, off we go to the Coast Range of Oregon to visit our first waterfalls. Links take you to the Northwest Waterfall Survey pages which give the waterfalls ratings 0-100. The highest rated waterfall in Oregon is Multnomah Falls with a rating of 89.92, so you have something to compare other waterfalls here to.

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SOUTHWESTERN WASHINGTON WATERFALLS – HIDDEN IN THE FORESTS

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East Fork of the Lewis River tumbles over Lucia Falls in the summer.

When people visit waterfalls in the Portland area they normally are drawn magnetically to the Columbia River Gorge. The magnificence of the Gorge is without a doubt. The State’s highest and best known waterfalls are here complete with a wonderful trail system through an everchanging natural setting – albeit, a little beat up from fires presently. But there are other lesser known waterfalls in Oregon while across the Columbia, Southwestern Washington sports its own waterfalls outside of the Gorge well worth a visit, as well.

This is the first short essay covering waterfalls in the immediate Portland area. Included here are several waterfalls in southwestern Washington all worth a visit. The essay does not try to be inclusive of all options, but steers only toward some options worthy of your time and efforts. A time limit of two hours from the Rose City is included which covers quite a bit of ground.

Links take you to the Northwest Waterfall Survey pages which give the waterfalls ratings 0-100. The highest rated waterfall in Oregon is Multnomah Falls with a rating of 89.92, so you have something to compare other waterfalls here to.

White Salmon River pouring over ledges at Husum.
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