Cascades in the Cascades

Multnomah Falls

Tim and I were headed in the wrong direction as we traveled west through The Dalles and down the Columbia River Gorge.  Friends told us to watch for the two-tiered cascade of Multnomah Falls on the south side of Interstate 84, but they neglected to say that these falls, which plummet 620-feet, are best seen as you travel from west to east.

Still, it would be hard to miss it.  After all, there is a rest stop between the two lanes of travel which affords a view of the falls.  But we lumbered by before we realized that we needed to maneuver the Dawntreader into the left lane to exit, if we wanted to stop.  By then, the falls were beyond our sight.

Not wishing to miss what more than two million people stop each year to view, Multnomah Falls, the most visited natural recreation site in the Pacific Northwest, we decided to return to this spot, devoting one of our days in Portland to do so.

Benson Bridge

Just a quarter mile up from the rest stop's historic Multnomah Falls Lodge is Benson Bridge, a graceful arching bridge, perfect for photo ops.  The bridge was built in 1914 by Simon Benson, the same lumber baron who donated his Benson Bubbler water fountains to Portland.

Where it rains, it pours--waterfalls, that is!  The wet winter weather of the Pacific Northwest empties over 200 inches of rainfall on the Cascade Mountains.  That water-drenched air cannot make it over the chain of mountains so it jettisons the rain on the west side of the range.  The result is more than 90 major waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge.

Dutchman Falls

We saw five falls within five miles as we hiked to the top of Multnomah Falls; then, followed the Larch Mountain Trail in a loop to return to the historic Multnomah Falls Lodge at the base.

Weisendanger Falls

Ecola Falls

Fairy Falls

Wahkeena Falls

Five major waterfalls--six, if you include Multnomah--not to mention all the smaller cascades I failed to count.

But our hike wasn't easy!

The trail to the top of Multnomah Falls has 11 steep switchbacks and no guard rails to keep you on the narrow path.  

Tim noted we gained 1700 feet in elevation before we returned to the base. 

Multnomah Falls Overlook

No wonder the majority of those two million visitors are satisfied to simply take a snapshot from the base of this place.