Willamette National Forest: Salt Creek Falls and Diamond Creek Falls (Blog Hike #868)

Trails: Salt Creek Falls and Diamond Creek Falls Trails
Hike Location: Willamette National Forest, Salt Creek Falls
Geographic Location: east of Oakridge, OR (43.61209, -122.12771)
Length: 3.5 miles
Difficulty: 6/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: July 2021
Overview: A semiloop past 2 large waterfalls.
Trail Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/willamette/recreation/recarea/?recid=4654
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=880921
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video:

Directions to the trailhead: This hike starts at the signed Willamette National Forest parking area for Salt Creek Falls, which is located on the south side of SR 58 30 miles west of US 97 or 22 miles east of Oakridge.  Park in the parking loop for Salt Creek Falls.

The hike: In the travels of a hiker, some ultra-scenic destinations are anticipated months in advance, while others take you by surprise.  I drove into the Willamette National Forest's Salt Creek Falls parking area merely trying to break up the several-hour drive from the Willamette River valley to Crater Lake.  I was expecting a "routine" forest hike, but what I found was two major waterfalls on par with any at Oregon's more famous Silver Falls State Park.  The scenery here was nothing short of amazing, and I had an excellent hike here.

            The size and water volume of Salt Creek Falls surprised me due to their location high in the Willamette River's watershed.  Willamette Pass, the highest point on SR 58, the main route out of the southeast corner of the Willamette River valley, lies less than 6 miles east of here.  Salt Creek Falls' close proximity to SR 58 and easy access by ADA-accessible trail make it a popular destination, so you will likely not be alone here, especially in the summer.

            For people willing to venture past the developed overlooks at the rim of Salt Creek Falls, more wonderful scenery awaits, as does more solitude.  One trail descends to the base of Salt Creek Falls and offers perhaps the area's best waterfall view.  Another trail leads along the rim of Salt Creek's canyon before heading up a ravine that leads to another excellent waterfall: Diamond Creek Falls.  This hike uses both of these trails to explore all the scenery this area has to offer.

Trailhead at parking loop

            From the Salt Creek Falls parking loop, browse the numerous interpretive signs before heading down the asphalt trail that leads to the top of Salt Creek Falls.  In only 150 feet, you reach the rimtop observation site for Salt Creek Falls.  At 286 feet, Salt Creek Falls is the second highest single-drop waterfall in Oregon.  Salt Creek provides plenty of water to fall, and impressive vertical basalt cliffs towering on either side of the waterfall make for a stark setting.

Rimtop view of Salt Creek Falls

            After enjoying the rimtop view, take the trail to the right that heads to the base of the waterfall.  The well-engineered trail descends on a moderate grade using steps and switchbacks.  Tall pine trees make for a nice setting that is disrupted only by traffic noise from nearby SR 58.

Base view of Salt Creek Falls

            Just past 0.3 miles, you reach the base-view overlook for Salt Creek Falls.  I found the base view more impressive than the rim view: the heights of the cliffs and the waterfall become more imposing from this angle.  The trail ends at the overlook, so now you have to retrace your steps back uphill to the rimtop waterfall observation site.

Trail to base of Salt Creek Falls

            Next walk past the rimtop waterfall overlooks and through a nice shady picnic area along Salt Creek above the falls.  At the end of the picnic area, the asphalt ends when you cross a long wooden bridge over Salt Creek.  A wooden sign here indicates that this is the start of the Diamond Creek Falls Trail, which is marked with blue blazes.

Start of Diamond Creek Falls Trail

            After crossing the bridge, you find yourself in a pleasant grove of pine trees, where the Diamond Creek Falls Trail splits to form its loop.  To make the climbing a little easier, I turned right and used the trail going left as my return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.  The trail undulates moderately as it heads west with Salt Creek's canyon below the falls on the right.  Some rocky outcrops give expansive views down the canyon.

View down Salt Creek's canyon

            As you hike the Diamond Creek Falls Trail, you may notice that all of the blazes and trail signs are located several feet above your head.  This oddity is due to the fact that this trail is used by snowshoers in the winter when several feet of snow blanket the ground.  After passing the last Salt Creek Canyon overlook, the trail curves left and begins climbing up the ravine of Fall Creek, which flows and cascades downhill to your right.

Hiking the Diamond Creek Falls Trail

            After a moderate climb up the ravine, the spur trail to Diamond Creek Falls exits right at 2.1 miles.  The spur trail descends on a somewhat steep and precarious course to reach the base of Diamond Creek Falls.  If you do not feel like taking the spur trail, a rimtop overlook of Diamond Creek Falls sits just ahead on the main trail.  Measuring 121 feet in height, Diamond Creek Falls is a tall cascading-type waterfall.  Fall Creek provides a decent amount of water, and this waterfall would be very impressive had you not passed Salt Creek Falls earlier in this hike.

Diamond Creek Falls

            After climbing a single switchback, you reach a trail intersection.  The option going straight is the Vivian Lake Trail, and it leads to Fall Creek Falls and its namesake lake, both of which lie in the Willamette National Forest's Diamond Peak Wilderness.  Turn left to continue the Diamond Creek Falls Trail.

Hiking through dense forest

            Soon you cross dirt FR 420 and reach the highest elevation on this hike, which is about 400 vertical feet above the base of Salt Creek Falls.  The balance of the hike descends through young pine forest that features a dense understory of mountain laurel.  Despite the dense forest, I did some nice bird watching here.  Just past 3.2 miles, you close the Diamond Creek Falls Trail's loop.  Turn right to recross the bridge over Salt Creek and walk back through the picnic area to return to the Salt Creek Falls observation area and complete the hike.  Before you leave, isn't fantastic 286-foot Salt Creek Falls worth one more look?