June 26, 2014 - Silver Falls State Park

On a drizzly morning we headed toward Silver Falls State Park, east of Salem. We passed a lot of farms on the way. Most of them seemed to be tree farms, and most of the tree farms looked like Christmas tree farms. So that's where they come from!

The Whiny Part:

(feel free to skip this part)

Upon arriving at the park we decided to have more parking problems. We knew that we would need to pay a parking fee, but we didn't have very clear directions on where or how to do that or how to get to the starting point of the walk. By sheer luck we found the place to buy the parking pass. We asked the woman in the booth where the volkswalk was and she said something like "Go out that way and go right, then right, then left to the (indistinguishable) area." Or maybe she said "Go out that way and go right, then left, then right to the (indistinguishable) area." She spoke so quickly it was difficult to understand her. We thought we would see the usual large orange "Volkssport Event" sign so we looked up and down the road each time we had to turn, and ended up going right and then left and then down a long winding, hilly road with no place to turn around. Eventually we were able to turn around, but only after I was starting to feel carsick. Then, by sheer luck again, we found the (indistinguishable) area (which turned out to be the "day use" area) and we headed across several parking lots to a place where there were several cars and lots of people (but no orange signs). Eureka! It was the right place!

We ran into friends, Bev and John, just as we were starting to walk. On the website this walk was rated as 2C. It was listed as 11k, with an option to extend it to 12k. No shorter option was listed, but we were prepared for a long walk with trekking poles, raincoats, bug dope, snacks, water, and random other stuff that a good Girl Scout would think of bringing. 

The instructions that we were given at the site said the walk was 2B and it was 12k, with an option to extend it to 13k. (This walk was definitely 2C, and I have serious doubts about the distances. Part of the way through the walk, there is a note that says: If you are finding yourself exhausted you can take Winter Trail [a shortcut] . . . and save about 5k . . .  

This would presumably make the 12k walk a 7k walk. There are three reasons why I don't think that route was 7k: 1) It took us a little over 3 hours. We have been doing 10k walks in under 3 hours, so even with all the climbing, it seemed like more than 7k. 2) Using the distances given in the instructions, you start the shortcut at 5.3k, the shortcut is 1k, and when you rejoin the main route you have at least 2.3k to go (assuming those numbers are accurate). This adds up to 8.6k. 3) The way my feet and knees felt, I'm sure it was more than 7k.  

The map provided with the instructions was a generic park map and did not show the actual route and was not particularly helpful.

The Walk:

We started at a picnic shelter in Parking Area D. From this point on, there were no bathrooms, a fact which I was unable to determine before starting the walk, despite persistent questioning. At the beginning of the walk we saw the South Falls Lodge, a beautiful log structure on the National Register of Historic Places. 

South Falls Lodge

Then we descended into a canyon, where we saw South Falls (177 ft). It was quite impressive. What made it really special was that the trail actually went behind the falls, though you had to bend over in places to avoid overhanging rock.

South Falls

Behind South Falls, where the sun don't shine

The next waterfall was Lower South Falls (93 ft). The trail also went behind this waterfall.

Lower South Falls

Our third waterfall was Lower North Falls (30 ft). 

Lower North Falls

The fourth waterfall was Double Falls (178 ft).

Double Falls

Drake Falls (27 ft) came 5th. The sixth waterfall was Middle North Falls (106 ft). At this point we took the shorter route and went toward Winter Falls (134 ft).

Winter Falls

Since we did not hike the entire route, we missed the last three falls. After Winter Falls we had a longish hike back to the starting point. Part of that was on a bike trail. We did not see any bikers. Bikers, pets and horses are not allowed on the other trails.

Most of the trail was rocky and slippery and there were lots of steep places. I would estimate our total elevation gain at somewhere between 800 and 1000 ft. We were in a beautiful forest the entire time. There were waist-high ferns, moss-covered trees, wildflowers, and even some wild berries. We did not see any wildlife other than a snail, a slug, and some interesting but ugly caterpillars.

I am so glad I had trekking poles with me. I have gotten my money's worth out of them on this trip.

There are not many trails (maybe no other trails) where you can see 10 (or 7) waterfalls within 12 or 13k. In addition to the major waterfalls, we saw some gorgeous mini-waterfalls that you wanted to take home and put in your garden. A hard walk, but your efforts are rewarded.

Walk Route: A

Walk Instructions: C+ (Pre-walk instructions and information aout trail needs some work, as noted above. Information about bathrooms or lack thereof should be included.)

Bonus: The Gordon House

Since we were near Silverton, we couldn't go back to Portland without stopping to see the Gordon House, the only Frank Lloyd Wright house in Oregon. The story of the Gordon House is interesting. It was moved 24 miles to its present location after a new owner of the property decided to tear it down. You can read about it at www.thegordonhouse.org.