Wahkeena Falls

Wahkeena Falls is the quieter, more intricate counterpart to Multnomah Falls just east. Wahkeena Creek runs less than a mile end to end, yet twists through a narrow basalt defile with enough volume to make a multi-tier waterfall. The hike is short — barely over a mile round trip to Lemmons Viewpoint, a quarter-mile to the falls themselves — but the stonework, spray, and view stack up against much longer Gorge trails.

From the viewing plaza above the parking lot, the trail crosses Wahkeena Creek, traverses into Douglas-fir and hemlock woods, and reaches the stone bridge built by Simon Benson as part of the Historic Columbia River Highway era. Heavy spray drenches hikers when the wind is blowing up-canyon. Above the bridge, the paved path climbs past a repurposed tombstone serving as the marker for the closed Perdition Trail — trail ranger Claude Dhone scored tombstones as trail signs in the 1960s. Eleven stone-walled switchbacks lead to a junction. A short spur to the right reaches Lemmons Viewpoint, named for an Oregon firefighter killed fighting a Nevada wildfire; the panorama stretches across to Cape Horn, the Prindle Cliffs, Archer Mountain, Hamilton Mountain, and Beacon Rock.

A sketchy, loose scramble down from 15 yards past the spur junction reaches The Necktie — the upper tier of Wahkeena Falls — with Little Necktie Falls cascading upstream. The route descends three loose switchbacks, traverses past a cable-and-cyclone fence that should not be leaned on, and works down hacked rock steps. Not a route for dogs, small children, or anyone unsteady on exposure. Most visitors stop at Lemmons Viewpoint or turn around at the stone bridge.