Wallace Falls - Lake Loop

This loop strings together the best of Wallace Falls State Park into one outing. You get the 265-foot falls, Wallace Lake, and the option to tack on Jay Lake, all connected by a network of trails that can be hiked in either direction. Most people go counterclockwise: up past the falls on the Woody Trail, across the DNR road section, down to Wallace Lake, and back via the Greg Ball Trail through stands of old-growth hemlock and cedar.

The falls are the obvious headliner, roaring through a narrow gorge with multiple viewpoints along the way. But the loop portion beyond the falls is where the crowds thin out. Wallace Lake sits quietly in a forested basin, and the Greg Ball Trail drops you back to the trailhead through some of the best old-growth in the Skykomish valley. If you want more, Jay Lake adds about a mile of flat walking past Wallace Lake, with backcountry campsites available.

This works year-round, which is part of its appeal. The falls run hardest in winter and spring when rain is steady. Mud is a factor on the Greg Ball Trail in wet months, and patches of snow can linger on the upper sections into March. The trailhead fills on weekends, but mid-week visits and off-season trips keep things reasonable. It is one of the better rainy-day options in the Highway 2 corridor since so much of the route runs through dense forest cover.