Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area

We departed Crater Lake and drove 90 miles north, to the town of Bend, Oregon -- we were due for our bi-weekly shower. We arrived precisely at the height of the heat dome. We endured a sizzling 108 while we ate sandwiches outside waiting for our laundry to dry; we endured a roasting 108 as we walked to a restaurant for dinner that ended up having an hour wait (so we ate gelato for dinner instead); however nothing could have prepared us for the sweltering night we sleeplessly spent in a historic brick home with no air conditioning. It was uncomfortable.

The only positive was the hostel came with free beers upon check-in, and we were able to shower.

I had originally booked two nights at a campsite in the Newberry Volcanic NM and then a night at Hanford Reach NM but I realized these were not NPS administered (and therefore no stamps to be had) and decided we wanted to visit somewhere else. Vitali had bought me “100 Parks, 5,000 Ideas” for Christmas and one of the full spread photos was of a waterfall in a remote area of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, which piqued my curiosity -- it was on the way.

I did a little research and found a campground that had a few sites available for first come-first serve, so we rolled up at 12:15 and started to look. It didn't seem too busy but a lot of the signs said reserved. Finally -- site #12, which I had seen on the website as available, was still open, and for the next three nights. Bingo! Two cars came in right after us looking so I think we got lucky.

The campsite was very peaceful; it was quiet (except for the constant interstate road noise), the sites were very far apart, the trees were beautiful, and there were flush toilets. It reminded us a little bit of Redwood forest but without the redwoods. There was train noise too, which sounded like a helicopter. To our surprise, the road noise kept us awake. Our last apartment was on a busy downtown artery and the road noise, while muffled, was omnipresent. Whenever we’d come back from hiking or vacation we’d always notice how loud it was before gradually becoming reaccustomed to it.

The campground was right near river access so went down to see about fishing. We drove into the lot and saw a bunch of RVs, boats, and fishing nets. It looked like lots of people were living there and fishing, and as we exited the lot to read the sign at the entrance more closely – we realized it was treaty land for the local indigenous people to fish.

We continued down the road to a public area and found a promising spot. Except there was a pile of poop… and more than one. We’ve never encountered actual human feces on a trail, until we got to Oregon. Poop right on the trail in four instances, so not an isolated occurrence. I did notice a lack of toilets along this stretch of high visitation so that probably contributed, but still... if I was in charge of managing a recreational area I would be hawking LNT principals at every opportunity.

Back to the task at hand -- Vitali had several nibbles and then finally landed one! It was a small largemouth bass who got lucky and was returned to the river.

The area in which we were staying is on the Historic Columbia River Highway, which once connected Troutdale (just outside Portland) and The Dalles, through 75 miles of scenic river gorge, and over 90 waterfalls on the Oregon side. The state is working on restoring the highway in its entirety -- so you can travel via car (or bike, or on foot) while avoiding the interstate. Vitali spent some time running on the shared path and reported that the wind was awful. That was one thing we noticed -- there was always a wind on the river as we learned, because of the pressure differential between the moist area to the west and the drier air to the east (which makes it a very popular destination for kite surfing).

The route also proved to be a very popular auto touring destination -- lots of people hopping from waterfall to waterfall, just like us! Over the next three days we eyeballed quite a few instances of water failing to resist gravity.

Below are the waterfalls we visited, with #1 being our favorite. None of them were unremarkable but we felt some were more remarkable than others!

#9 - Wahkeena Falls

Wahkeena Falls was the least impressive of the bunch, but still very beautiful. It was a short hike up to the bridge that bisected its fall, and it was misting heavily. It was along the trail to another waterfall, Fairy Falls, further down this list.

#8 - Lower Horsetail Falls

Very graceful fall, right off of the road. Lots of people milling about.

#7 - Upper Horsetail Falls

A steep and short climb to this one, placed 10th overall for the segment. The trail ran underneath the waterfall, beneath a giant basalt cliff. You could see the hexagonal chunks that had dropped onto the trail...

#6 - Fairy Falls

We learned pretty fast the general format of hiking in the gorge -- really fucking steep. Made 10th overall on this climb too (including stopping for pictures!) Saw a lot of banana slugs, including ones that didn't make it across the trail... This canyon appeared to be imbued with fairy magic.

#5 - Bridal Veil Falls

This waterfall was approached obliquely, and hidden behind a large boulder -- and then the full splendor is revealed as you come around the turn. These spilled into a beautiful pool surrounded by high walls covered in lush foliage.

#4 - Multnomah Falls

Vitali described these as "Sublime". Famously sublime, and very busy. Like almost everywhere this entire trip, we just beat the crowds and were departing as it really started to get clogged.

#3 - Spirit Falls

All of the waterfalls described previously had developed trailheads (although mostly no toilets), parking lots, etc. This one was on the Washington side of the gorge ($2 toll to cross the bridge, each way), and didn’t even have a sign. Just a steep slope down and away from a gravel parking area. And boy was it steep. Some kind soul left a rope for maybe a 200’ section of trail and we were glad to have it. The trail was steep enough to make it very difficult to maintain traction, with jagged rocks, loose gravel, downed trees, and roots everywhere. It was hardly even a trail.

The falls poured into a stunning turquoise blue pool and then cascaded down the river. The trail around the pool was very exposed though (and steep), so that detracted from our enjoyment a bit.

We found a dedicated gluten-free bakery afterwards and enjoyed several thousand calories of baked goodies.

#2 - Latourell Falls

Supremely elegant, one straight fall into a small pool below. Basalt columns surrounded the pool at the base.

#1 - Wahclella Falls

This one was a very enjoyable hike and had wild blackberries along the trail which were just starting to ripen. Beautiful lush fern walls surrounding the emerald pool.

Our time in the gorge was at an end -- The next day we’d have a long day of sightseeing between here and our next stop, Mt. Rainier National Park.

We wanted to stop by the Japanese Garden in Portland but we were in the area earlier than their first timed entry, so we missed it. We did drive through downtown though and thought It was pretty cool -- lots of homeless people though (apparently almost three times the amount per capita than Denver).

We turned north and stopped by the Fort Vancouver National Historical Site, which was where the Hudson’s Bay Company had their west coast headquarters for the booming early 19th century fur trade. Interestingly, this area was part of the disputed Oregon territory between (primarily) the U.S. and Great Britain, both countries occupying the area during that era.

The buildings inside the fort were very well staged, and we caught the tail end of a ranger-led tour. The company store building was a bit macabre with all of the furs hanging around. We learned that bobcat fur (which is wonderfully soft), was seen as a less luxurious fur, and therefore commanded lower prices. There's no accounting for bad taste!

There was also a beautiful demonstration garden outside of the fort, meant to represent a small portion of the original English gardens that were planted there. Nearly all of the flowers were in full bloom.

On to our last stop before Rainier – Mt. Saint Helens National Volcanic Monument, which is not managed by the NPS, but we thought warranted a stop anyway. I only told Vitali that after we got there...

The drive up was long and winding – but the view at the top was well worth it. The side that blew out was front and center, the dramatic landscape beneath an alien visage. The architecture of the visitor center was nice too, a play on the brutality of a volcanic eruption and man's desire to bring order to natural chaos. They did have a passport stamp too.

The Columbia River Gorge was an unexpected delight -- I had never even heard of it until seeing it mentioned in the book that Vitali got me. The number and variety of waterfalls here earned its place in our trip and we were glad we happened to visit.