Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area: Wahclella Falls (Blog Hike #862)

Trail: Wahclella Falls Trail (Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Trail #436)
Hike Location: Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
Geographic Location: west of Hood River, OR (45.63136, -121.95388)
Length: 2 miles
Difficulty: 5/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: July 2021
Overview: A lollipop loop passing horsetail-shaped Wahclella Falls.
Trail Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/crgnsa/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=29992&actid=50
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=880366
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video:

Directions to the trailhead: In the Columbia River Gorge, take I-84 to the Bonneville Dam exit (exit 40).  Exit, turn to go south, and then angle right on the first road south of I-84, which leads to the parking loop for the Wahclella Falls Trail.  Be sure to pay the parking fee before heading out on the trail.

The hike: Formed during the last Ice Age by repeated massive floods from melting ice, the Columbia River Gorge is an 80-mile east-west canyon that runs along part of the Oregon/Washington border.  The gorge is the largest water gap in the Cascades Mountain range, and runoff from eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, most of Idaho, and southern British Columbia flows through the gorge via the Columbia River.  The gorge forms a major transportation corridor used by US 30, I-84, and railroads on either side of the river.

            The Columbia River Gorge is also the premier recreation destination in northwest Oregon and southwest Washington.  Although many Oregon and Washington state parks exist in the gorge, the largest park in the gorge is the 292,500-acre Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.  The Scenic Area is managed and maintained by the United States Forest Service in partnership with the Columbia River Gorge Commission, which consists of representatives from the states of Oregon and Washington.

            Waterfalls are among the gorge's main attractions, and over 90 waterfalls exist on the Oregon side of the gorge alone.  The next 2 hikes take you to two of the gorge's most famous waterfalls: Wahclella Falls and Multnomah Falls.  When I planned my summer 2021 Oregon hiking trip, I allocated only 1 day for the Columbia River Gorge, and I when I got here I realized I should have allocated at least 2 or 3 days: there are that many fabulous places to visit in the gorge.

Trailhead: Wahclella Falls Trail

            From the signed trailhead at the rear of the parking lot, the Wahclella Falls Trail starts as a two-track gravel road, but soon the road ends and you find yourself on single-track dirt trail.  Tanner Creek flows against you to the right, and small cascades give hints of things to come.  At 0.3 miles, you pass another foretaste of what is to come: Munra Falls, a tall cascading waterfall that is more of a near-vertical waterslide than a waterfall.  Munra Falls is located on a small tributary to Tanner Creek, so the water volume is rather low.

Munra Falls

            Soon you enter the Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness Area, and the trail begins climbing up the left wall of Tanner Creek's steep ravine.  Basalt cliffs tower over the trail, and the big pine trees that live here still have burn marks from the wildfires that ravaged the gorge a few years ago.  Some wooden steps built into the ground aid the climb, and this section of trail treads some 50 feet above the creek to the right.

Trail splits to form loop

            At 0.6 miles, the trail splits to form its loop.  For no particular reason, I chose to turn right on the lower trail and use the higher trail going left as my return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.  The trail descends via a pair of switchbacks and crosses Tanner Creek on a long wooden footbridge.  The creek here is very bouldery, but it still has a large volume of water.

Tanner Creek

            After passing through a rocky area and crossing back over Tanner Creek on another bridge, you reach the main viewpoint for Wahclella Falls.  This waterfall has an unusual shape: water flows through a narrow chasm before making its final drop into a large plunge pool.  When I came here on a Wednesday morning in mid-July, I passed several people on the trail, but only 1 other person was at this viewpoint.  Take a few minutes to enjoy this spectacular area.

Wahclella Falls, from a distance

Wahclella Falls

New wooden bridge at landslide area

            Past the waterfall, you climb some stone steps to reach the highest elevation on this hike, which is about 250 vertical feet above the trailhead.  This last section of the loop has been reconstructed after the aforementioned wildfires, and it features a fantastic new wooden bridge over a landslide area.  At 1.4 miles, you close the loop.  Retrace your steps downhill along Tanner Creek to return to the parking lot and complete the hike.  While you are in this area, nearby Horsetail Falls is also worth a visit.  Horsetail Falls is similar in shape and size to Wahclella Falls, but its roadside location ensures you will be sharing it with a much larger number of visitors.