Route Editor
Route Scout
Give my regards to Holbert and Kiwanis by Dano This was my first hike in Oregon since moving to Washington State from Arizona. It is one of the most visited places in Oregon, and for good reason: a 550-foot high waterfall, within 100 yards of an interstate highway. It's less than a 30 minute drive from downtown Portland. Most folks walk the short distance to the lodge and base of the falls; some even hike the 1/4 mile to the bridge for a closer view. Even this short distance creates a great photography opportunity. However, the best view is from the top, via a 1.1 mile paved trail. Once you get past the bridge, the crowds will dissipate quickly, because of the steepness of the trail. The good people of Oregon put a series of signs that count the number of switchbacks to the top (there are 11), along with markers at every quarter-mile. There are several places to stop and view the falls along the way, and the higher up you get, the better the view of the Columbia River Gorge. The only down side is the noise from the highway and railway below. This is your motivation to get to the top, because once you cross to the other side, man-made noise is replaced by natural running water noise. After about 3/4 mile, the trail heads East away from the falls, but then comes over a rise and then it's a short distance downhill, along the creek, to the viewing area that allows you to look right over the edge. The viewing deck will keep any folks from foolishly trying to get too close, but allows you to see down to the lodge, and out along the Gorge. One warning: Please be sure to secure and hide valuables in your car. Thieves like to smash in windows and grab what they can see. Check out the Triplogs. Leave No Trace and +Add a Triplog after your hike to support this local community.
One-Way Notice This hike is listed as One-Way. When hiking several trails on a single "hike", log it with a generic name that describes the hike. Then link the trails traveled, check out the example. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.
Most recent Triplog Reviews
Multnomah Falls
after traveling farther down the gorge to almost hood river for another hike only to find out that access was too snowy for my parents' vehicle, i decided on my usual wahkeena springs loop from multnomah falls - a great plan b.
when i started out, it was raining, but as soon as i got to the lower bridge near the trailhead, the rain stopped.
lots of folks on the trail with it being just a couple of days after christmas, and these people were in all manners of dress. it made me chuckle to see a woman in a sweater dress, tights, and hiking boots. there were others in shorts, some in winter boots without any traction. above the overlook, the trail was super slick and with plenty of snow, so these choices dumbfounded me up there.
i ended up not doing the full loop since i didn't have much daylight left, and i had left my yak trax at the parent's house.
i always like it when the roar of the highway gives way to the roar of the falls. what a great day.
when i started out, it was raining, but as soon as i got to the lower bridge near the trailhead, the rain stopped.
lots of folks on the trail with it being just a couple of days after christmas, and these people were in all manners of dress. it made me chuckle to see a woman in a sweater dress, tights, and hiking boots. there were others in shorts, some in winter boots without any traction. above the overlook, the trail was super slick and with plenty of snow, so these choices dumbfounded me up there.
i ended up not doing the full loop since i didn't have much daylight left, and i had left my yak trax at the parent's house.
i always like it when the roar of the highway gives way to the roar of the falls. what a great day.
2012-12-27 cindyl
Multnomah Falls
Wahkeena Springs Loop
What a wet hike. I thought that I could be near crazy when I took off on this hike on Tuesday morning with all the rain that we were having. It was typical Pacific Northwest rain and fog - so there weren't really any good views. And my camera lens got wet. Still, the temperature was alright, so I didn't feel too bad about wearing my rain layers.
This hike is very similar to the Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena Falls Loop hike I did back in March. After hiking up Multnomah Falls, I followed the Larch Mountain trail past the Wahkeena Trail cutoff to see how far I could go before running into a whole lot of snow. Turns out, it wasn't snow that turned me back, but water. There were numerous water crossings, and some were just a little too deep and too wide to do without waders. This little excursion added about .8 miles and about 300 feet of elevation. After making it back to the Wahkeena Trail, I stayed on the Wahkeena Trail to past Wahkeena Springs. The volunteer at the Visitors Center said that this was THE way to go, but I'm not so sure - I didn't even see the spring. It did add a little more elevation (about 100 feet) and a little less mileage than doing the Vista Trail shortcut. It also allowed me to see some of the alternate ways to get to Devil's Rest, which was the next day's destination, if there's not too much snow...
Note: I stopped back by the visitors center after my hike to let them know that there's a portion of the Wahkeena trail that had been washed away just below the falls - my photoset will show this. My guess is that it'll be a while before they let people up there again...
Video of Wahkeena Falls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC2UTWbTt9A
This hike is very similar to the Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena Falls Loop hike I did back in March. After hiking up Multnomah Falls, I followed the Larch Mountain trail past the Wahkeena Trail cutoff to see how far I could go before running into a whole lot of snow. Turns out, it wasn't snow that turned me back, but water. There were numerous water crossings, and some were just a little too deep and too wide to do without waders. This little excursion added about .8 miles and about 300 feet of elevation. After making it back to the Wahkeena Trail, I stayed on the Wahkeena Trail to past Wahkeena Springs. The volunteer at the Visitors Center said that this was THE way to go, but I'm not so sure - I didn't even see the spring. It did add a little more elevation (about 100 feet) and a little less mileage than doing the Vista Trail shortcut. It also allowed me to see some of the alternate ways to get to Devil's Rest, which was the next day's destination, if there's not too much snow...
Note: I stopped back by the visitors center after my hike to let them know that there's a portion of the Wahkeena trail that had been washed away just below the falls - my photoset will show this. My guess is that it'll be a while before they let people up there again...
Video of Wahkeena Falls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC2UTWbTt9A
2010-12-28 cindyl
Multnomah Falls
Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena Falls Loop
went with an old college friend of mine - we were just planning on going up multnomah falls, but ended up taking a slight detour. from trail 441 (larch mountain trail to multnomah falls overlook) past weisendanger falls and ecola falls to trail 420 (wahkeena trail), to trail 419c (vista point trail) to fairy falls, past lemmon's viewpoint, then trail 400 (gorge trail) down to wahkeena falls and the connector trail 442 (return trail) back to multnomah falls lodge. this loop was fantastic - fairly easy trail with big payoff in plenty of waterfalls, rapids, and wildflowers (lots of photo ops!). the weather was good for the northwest - no rain, but overcast skies.
2010-03-05 cindyl
Multnomah Falls
I lived in the Portland area from like 1994 to 2001 and unfortunately I wasn't much into hiking back then, but I think I hiked to the top of this amazing falls at least a few times and to the upper bridge at least a dozen times. 
1998-06-01 Vaporman
