For the most part I was just spending time with the folks, a week hanging out and even doing some chores around the house.
I did have one day planned in an otherwise unplanned week… A hike somewhere, a chance to enjoy a bit of summer in a classic Pacific Northwest sort of way. This year it would be waterfalls.
I had two waterfalls picked out… Falls Creek Falls and Panther Falls, both located in the hills above Carson, on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge.
Along with the waterfalls I had one other stop planned, a quick excursion to the new Mitchell Point Tunnel. Add a lunch somewhere along the way and I had a full day.
An important part of the plan was an early start. I left the house at 4am for a dark drive up the gorge for a planned dawn arrival at the trailhead.
The morning dawned clear and beautiful… It should be a great day.
Given my recent incidents with island goats in the road I was a bit worried about deer in the woods at night. Smashing up my parent’s vehicle was not in the plan! I did see several, including one group of does in the middle of the road, right on the main street of Stevenson among the shops.
The dark drive did cause some issues, I missed the turn into the trailhead on the first pass, having to retrace my course trying to find the turn in the dark was challenging as the turn was not where I expected, but a ways further downhill. Find it I did, arriving at the parking lot before the Sun was in the sky as planned.
An empty parking lot informed me I was the first to arrive despite the wrong turn. I donned boots and pack to start up the trail. The crisp pre-dawn air, the smells, the muted calls of birds echoing through the forest, a burbling creek… This was exactly what I came for!!
The trail runs up the canyon following the stream, crossing once on a lovely cable bridge over a narrow gorge. My only real complaint is that along much of the way the trail is well up the side of the valley and not beside the creek, denying a hiker access to the lovely stream.
I was also rudely reminded of an issue that occurs when you are the first hiker on a trail in the morning… Cobwebs! You get to find and clear every web the local spiders have strung across the trail in the night. With no overnight dew the webs were pretty much invisible, I cleared most of them bodily, simply crashing through.
Falls Creek Falls is simply spectacular.
I had picked the falls because it was big, 335ft from top to bottom, one of Washington’s tallest falls. Not that you see this all at once, the falls has three tiers, each about 100ft high. Each of these falls is a beautiful waterfalls in it own right. The upper two tiers are tumblers, where the water cascades in sheets and small channels over a large rock face. The lower falls is a straight plunge, a single column of water dropping into a sizable plunge pool at the base.
Between each tier is a fierce rapids through a jumble of boulders and logs. The spray from the falls ensures a damp environment that results in a profusion of growth. A vivid green covers the boulders with mosses, ferns, and small shrubs. All of this is set in deep forest with hundred foot fir and cedar trees crowding from each side.
After enjoying the view for a bit I set about some serious photography, first from the ground, and then from the air. I carefully manuevered the drone out from my ledge in the trees to the open air above the falls. Having the falls to myself meant I bothered no one launching and landing the drone at the viewpoint.
The falls really cannot be fully appreciated from the ground, the upper tier, fully as big as the lower two is unseen from below. The drone gave me a vantage point to see and photograph it all. I flew up and down the height of the falls, shooting stills, shooting video, shooting a few 360° panoramas, running two of my three batteries flat. Panning a video up all three tiers of the falls took a few tries to get right, but the result is worth the effort.
The dawn arrival had worked as planned. I had the waterfall to myself for four peaceful hours. It was not until I was halfway along the trail out before I met anyone. Four women hiking together celebrated a bit when I commented that I had cleared out every overnight cobweb across the trail for them. They laughed and asked me to take a group photo for them. They were have a good day, a sentiment I had to agree with.
After the first group it was if a starting gate had opened, I passed another group every couple minutes, it was going to be crowded. Falls Creek Falls is understandably a very popular and busy trail, even on a weekday morning.
On to Panther Falls!
Panther is a twenty minute drive from Falls Creek, back down the main highway and then up the Panther Creek canyon. The road follows the creek closely, crossing back and forth through the lush forest. A nice Forest Service campground and multiple unimproved campsites can be found along the road, a place to consider for camping in the future.
Where Falls Creek Falls is spectacular in it’s size and three tiered grandeur, Panther falls is much more delicate. Smaller and lacking a main channel, rather the falls is spread in a curtain across the rock face. Every little part of the falls is a fairy kingdom of moss and rivulets of water. The top of the falls is overgrown, the water seems to appear directly from the brush and trees at the top.
A short but steep trail allows access to both the top and base of the falls. Well maintained, but not recommended for anyone with reduced mobility. One may be tempted to go past the well marked end of the trail, and it appears some do. I honored the signs and ended my hike at the lower viewpoint.
It was there I crashed the drone.
Clipping an unseen branch the drone tumbled onto the streambank just adjacent to the viewpoint. A dose of bad luck tempered by a small lucky break… It was easy and relatively safe to retrieve the drone, it could have so easily landed somewhere inaccessible in this rugged canyon.
Fortunately I was able to repair the drone before flying on to Cordova for our Alaska fishing trip.
With waterfall hikes complete I was ready for a burger. I found what I was looking for at the Big River Grill in Stevenson. A proper cheeseburger with Tillamook cheddar and sweet potato fries… Perfect! I sat and reviewed photos, enjoying a lovely day out in the gorge.
After lunch it was on to the Mitchell Point Tunnel, a subject for another post.
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