Push up the rocky, uneven trail past a draw in the side of the gorge. The trail rises across slopes of basalt rock that present windows out of the forest and across the Columbia River toward Washington. Moss clings to tree trunks, downed logs, and a few boulders. Make the obvious left turn to continue toward Angel’s Rest, rising gradually through a forest of broadleaf maples. Starting from the main trailhead, walk to the west side of the lot by a kiosk and safely cross to the south side of Historic Columbia River Highway where a sign and staircase mark the start of Angel’s Rest Trail.Īs the hike gets underway, you’ll come to a merger with the trail from the overflow lot. A connector trail from this parking area unites with the main trail. If the parking lot is full, travel west on Historic Columbia River Highway and make the first left up to an overflow parking area. We ended our evening back at Amy and Andrews, preparing for the next day and hoping that the weather would clear up since we were planning to make a longer drive out to Mount St Helens.Angel’s Rest Trailhead has a parking area on Historic Columbia River Highway by exit 28 of Interstate 84 (approximately 25 miles from Portland). It would have been fun to keep going if the weather were nicer, but after nine miles of hiking and seeing so many beautiful sights already, we all agreed that it was time to head back to Portland and get some dinner. A quick stop at the Vista House viewpoint brought with it an even harsher downpour, and quelled our desires to be outside. We had hoped to get at least a glimpse of Mount Hood, but with the rain and thick cloud cover, it was impossible. Latourell was easily amongst my favorite waterfalls I’ve ever seen, which is a distinguishing achievement considering how many amazing waterfalls I’ve seen.Īs we hiked back to the car, the roaring sound of Latourell Falls growing quieter with every step and the rain picked up force. I couldn’t stop staring at the water dancing down from the top of the cliff, and for the second time in as many days, I was reminded of the south coast of Iceland. I wasn’t about to leave that spot until I had at least one decent picture of it.Ī few minutes later my patience was rewarded and the Stellar’s Jay landed nearby again, just long enough for me to get exactly one good picture. I hunkered down to wait it out, sure that the bird would return judging by its keen interest in our food. Of course, it flew away just as I lifted the camera to take a shot. I was overly excited to see the vibrant bird, and I switched over to my 75-300mm lens to try to capture a picture of it. When I returned to the group, a gorgeous Stellar’s Jay was lurking nearby, hoping in vain that Amy and Bonnie would share some trail mix with it. It felt like we were on top of the world, even though the road was a mere 1,500 feet below us.Įveryone sat down and pulled snacks from their packs, but I scampered off to take pictures of our beautiful surroundings. We hiked all the way out to the end of the ridge and stopped to admire our hard-won view. Once we were on the ridge line of Angel’s Rest, we were surrounded by awe-inspiring views of the Columbia River, which was shrouded overhead by dramatic clouds. I tried to take some long exposure shots yet again, but it was a rainy morning, and I had meager success. We took two cars and parked them at different trailheads because we’d be doing a nine mile through hike, not a loop then we enjoyed the view at the falls before heading uphill. We arrived early, not to beat the crowds, but because we were planning to undertake a much longer hike starting from Multnomah Falls. You won’t get silence and solitude on your visit, but you will get a beautiful view with plenty of other people nearby to take your photo with the falls. Even though it looks like it’s in a deep forest, Multnomah Falls is just a couple minutes walk from the Columbia River Highway, and viewable from a large overlook. But much like other instagram hotspots, a picture doesn’t tell the full story of this waterfall. The double tiered, spring fed waterfall is dizzyingly tall, and the bridge halfway up its canyon makes for a beautiful scene. In fact, if you’ve spent any amount of time on instagram, you’ve probably seen many photos of Multnomah Falls, and for good reason. This picturesque waterfall is the most visited recreation site in the Pacific Northwest. Our second morning in Portland was an early one, and it found us at an Oregon icon: Multnomah Falls. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream.
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