Multnomah Falls Oregon
By Andrew. Filed in The Americas |
Multhoma Falls
So after the Gilroy Garlic Festival, I headed up to Portland, OR to do some work. I’ve always heard about Multnomah Falls so I got in early on Sunday and headed out. Only about 20-30 minutes east of the airport. The falls was AMAZING! And the whole Columbia River Gorge was absolutely stunning.
Multhoma Falls view from bottom
This is at the very bottom of the falls. The falls is actually 2 levels and you can see both from here. See that pedestrian bridge on top? There’s a trail that runs from where I’m standing all the way to the top of the falls. The trailmap near me states that the bridge is .2 miles away and the top of the falls, 1.0 miles away…. so off I went!
Switchback 9 of 11
So the falls is 600+ feet high. And the trail is ALMOST all up hill with a total of 11 switchbacks and a marker at each turn. This was a pretty grueling hike. The funny thing was, remember how I said that the trailmap said the top of the falls was 1.0 miles long? Well… they LIED! Just before this marker, was the 1 mile post! So people were seeing that and were CURSING because they were already exhausted from that 1 mile uphill hike. Most turned back. Not me! The GOOD thing is that at the switchback 9 marker, it’s all down hill from here.
Switchback 11 of 11
Made it to the final switchback! After going down hill from #9, it wasn’t nearly as exhausting at this point then when you reach #9. Only a little bit to go before the top of the falls.
View from the top
FINALLY at the top. Wonderful views and the platform is directly over the falls so you can look down. Really cool. And after 1.25 miles, a really fantastic hike.
Mt Hood
The falls is part of the Mt Hood Scenic Byway loop. This is a 100+ mile loop around Mt Hood with amazing views and historical sites at every turn. On the hwy 35 leg, you’ll find all kinds of produce farms. I stopped and picked my own cherries at one of them. They were goooooooooooooooood!
This is definately a return trip for me. I could spend a LONG weekend there just seeing all the historical sites. Not sure if I would want to do this in the winter unless I go specifically for skiing.
AIRMILES – TRIP: 834 TOTAL: 74,300