On the morning of day six of the cross-country journey, we had been nonetheless in northern Oregon an popped in for a brief hike within the Columbia River Gorge earlier than monitoring eastward…
To not be confused with close by Wahkeena Falls, the stem-and-loop hike described right here options the 60-foot Wahclella Falls, one of many extra spectacular flumes within the space. The stroll is comparatively stage and easy, threading a slender canyon en path to the waterfall. There may be one other, smaller chute alongside the best way—30-foot Munra Falls—and a various panorama of flora in what was as soon as an even-lusher panorama previous to the 2017 Eagle Creek Fireplace.
The hike
The Wahclella Falls Path begins at a dead-end parking space simply south of the Bonneville Fish Hatchery, about midway between Troutdale and Hood River (take Exit 40 off Interstate 84). Set again within the Tanner Creek drainage, out of sight of the Columbia River, the path begins as a large, graveled path by a combined forest, with the stream showing on the fitting.
The trail is a straightforward stroll because it programs southward for ¼ mile to a small dam on the fitting. Thereafter the path narrows, enters the Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness, and crosses a picket bridge over a tributary. Shock! There’s a waterfall so shut in your left that it’s inside spitting distance: that is Munra Falls, about 25-30 ft.
The path thins additional past, hugging a fern-laced, basalt wall. The hike’s first actual incline follows quickly thereafter, with Tanner Creek now effectively beneath path peak. Right here the trail cuts by the narrowing canyon and ascends to some extent the place the creek is almost obscured. Passing a burned space (from the Eagle Creek Fireplace), the route bounds up a brief staircase, then rises additional to an unmarked path fork. That is the beginning of the loop portion of the hike.
Staying left first, come to a bridge over one other tributary. Now excessive above the canyon, hikers get a reprieve because the incline reverses, dropping towards the waterfall. After which, eventually, dodging a gaggle of boulders, come right down to a perch overlooking Wahclella Falls and the beautiful, deep blue pool into which it flows. Wahclella is a comparatively high-volume chute and one of the engaging within the Columbia River Gorge.
Persevering with down additional to a picket bridge beneath the falls provides a unique take a look at the waterfall, which slices by a cleavage within the basalt layer. After the bridge, the path programs again north towards the trailhead and skirts a grotto and small cave on the left.
Quickly you’ll cross a second bridge again over Tanner Creek, adopted by two surprisingly steep switchbacks. This in flip leads again to the beginning of the loop portion. Head left and comply with the entry route for about 2/3 mile, passing Munra Falls and the dam once more earlier than culminating on the parking space.
