• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Good Hearted Woman logo
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beverages
    • Bread
    • Comfort Food
    • Cooking Basics
    • Condiments
    • German Recipes
    • Main Dishes
    • Salads
    • Seafood
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
    • Sourdough
    • Snacks
    • Sweets
    • 30-Minute Meals
  • Cozy Living
    • Arts & Crafts
    • For Music Lovers
    • Food Holidays
  • US Travel
    • One Day in...
    • Pacific
    • Rocky Mountains
    • Southwest
    • The South
    • Hikes Near & Far
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Cozy Living
  • Road Trips
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Cozy Living
    • Road Trips
    • About Us
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Hikes Near & Far

    Wahkeena Falls Hike

    June 17, 2016 • Updated: July 28, 2021 • by Renée B. • This post may contain affiliate links.

    Beautiful and easy to access, Wahkeena Falls is one of the most popular destinations in the Columbia River Gorge.

    Beautiful and easy to access, Wahkeena Falls is one of the most popular destinations in the Columbia River Gorge. | The Good Hearted Woman

    The Columbia River Gorge offers visitors almost an infinite hiking opportunities. Some of our favorite day hikes can be found along the string of waterfalls on Oregon’s Historic Columbia River Highway known as the “Waterfall Loop,” where well-maintained trails are abundant and the scenery is spectacular. The hike to Wahkeena Falls is especially beautiful, with something to see around every bend in the trail.

    Young couple looking at the falls.

    Unlike Multnomah Falls and many of the other falls on the waterfall loop, Wahkeena Falls is not a single, straight fall, but rather a series of steps, horsetails, and plunges between basalt outcroppings as Wahkeena Creek makes its way down to the base of the falls and on to the Columbia River.

    Wahkeena Falls is one of the most popular destinations in the Columbia River Gorge.

    Wahkeena Falls, once known as Gordon Falls (for F.E. Gordon, a pioneer landowner), was renamed in 1915, after the completion of the Columbia River Highway. Wahkeena – a Yakima Indian word meaning "most beautiful” – is a fitting name.

    From the Oregon State Archives "A 1940 Journey Across Oregon":

    ... WAHKEENA FALLS, 159.6 m., named for the daughter of a Yakima Indian chief, are considered by some the most beautiful of the many falls in the gorge. There is no sheer drop, but the waters hurl themselves in a series of fantastic cascades down the steep declivity. Wahkeena Creek has its source in Wahkeena Springs only a mile and a half above the cliff over which the waters plunge. ...

    Even the Wahkeena Falls trailhead is stunning. (I’m just going to say it – I’m really proud of this photograph.)

    Wahkeena Falls is one of the most popular destinations in the Columbia River Gorge.

    The hike to Wahkeena Falls is moderately easy, and although the trail offers a bit of an upward climb going in – a 400 feet gain in about a half mile – it is well worth the effort.

    Rick and me posing in front of Wahkeena Falls.

    From beginning to end, the Wahkeena Trail (#420) rewards day hikers with beautiful views. There is a short .2 mile paved hike to the lowest stage of the falls that’s popular with families and folks who aren’t up to hiking to the top. There is even a nice little stone bench if you want to sit down and take a break.

    From there, the trail takes you through about a dozen switchbacks with a steep rise in elevation that will seriously challenge your calves if you’ve avoiding the gym lately.

    Family on the trail to Wahkeena Falls.

    The trail is wide enough to walk side-by-side with a hiking buddy, and very well maintained. Like most of the trails in the waterfall loop, there are many interconnecting links, so be sure to mind the “street signs” that you see along the way.

    Patches on the trail.

    Notice: This post was written before the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire, which burned over 50,000 acres of forest in the Columbia Gorge. Wahkeena Falls has reopened, but may look different that these pictures portray.

    Know Before You Go

    • Distance: 1.4 miles round trip to the top, 0.4 round trip to the bridge
    • Hike Time: 1 – 1.5 hours
    • Elevation gain: 850 feet
    • Difficulty: Moderate
    • Hike Type: Out and back
    • Trail Condition: Well maintained trail
    • Start point: Wahkeena Trailhead Road
    • Family & dog-friendly (Dogs must be on a leash)
    Road to Perdition

    How to Get There

    From Portland head east on I-84 and take the Bridal Veil (Exit 28). At the Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway, take a left heading east and go approximately 3 miles, just before Multnomah Falls. There is parking on both sides of the highway, and the trail head is on the south side of the highway, heading west. There is another trail that connects this trail head to Multnomah Falls, heading east.

    Want More Free Recipes?

    Subscribe to our newsletter to get family-friendly recipes and cozy living ideas in your inbox each week!
    Find us sharing more inspiration on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.

    Thank you for visiting the Good Hearted Woman. Remember to bookmark this site, and come back soon!

    More Easy Hikes Near & Far

    • Short, easy, family-friendly wildflower hike - Camassia Nature Preserve {West Linn, Oregon} | The Good Hearted Woman
      Camassia Nature Preserve: Wildflowers & Family-friendly Hiking
    • Delicate arch in the morning sun. Hikers at the base.
      How to Survive on the Delicate Arch Trail
    • Oneonta Gorge Hike {9 Essential Tips} | The Good Hearted Woman
      Oneonta Gorge Hike (9 Essential Tips)
    • Hike to Elowah Falls & Upper McCOrd Creak Twin Falls | The Good Hearted Woman
      Elowah Falls & McCord Creek Falls Hike: The Trail Less Traveled
    • Share
    • Tweet
    • Yummly
    • Flipboard

    About Renée B.

    Renée is self-taught home chef with a penchant for creating healthy(ish) comfort food recipes, and adapting vintage recipes for the 21st century cook. In her spare time, she writes unfinished novels and songs about cowboys.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Robert Lopez says

      June 19, 2016 at 7:18 am

      Whoa.. I'd like to hike that falls myself..

      Reply
    2. Jen says

      June 18, 2016 at 11:06 pm

      You *should* be proud of that photo - all of them, in fact! Wahkeena was one of my first hikes when I moved to Portland. It's a special place for me.

      Reply
    3. Marlynn @ UrbanBlissLife says

      June 17, 2016 at 8:32 pm

      That's a great day hike! I love the helpful tips and details you've included in this post. And you *should* be proud of that photo -- it's stunning! Great capture, Renée!

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Adorable middle-aged couple in forest setting. (i.e., Me & Mr B)

    Join me & Mr B for the best in home cooking and cozy living - from the beautiful Pacific Northwest and beyond.

    More about us →

    Follow Us

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • https://twitter.com/rosewayrenee

    fresh recipes

    • Turkey brine aromatics in large stockpot: orange peel, ginger, peppercorns, apple cider, garlic, bay leaves, etc.
      Apple Cider Turkey Brine with Citrus, Ginger, & Herbs
    • Cooked steel cut oats in a bowl, garnished with strudel topping and thin apple slices.
      Rice Cooker Steel Cut Oats with Apples & Cinnamon
    • Small bowl of peanut sauce with chopped peanut sprinkled on top. More fresh rolls at the foot of the bowl.
      5-Minute Easy Peanut Sauce
    • Closeup of pumpkin pasta garnished with parmesan and fresh sage; ready to serve.
      Creamy Pumpkin Pasta with Parmesan & Sage
    • Nut streusel strewn in foreground leading to a cut square of streusel topped coffee cake in the background.
      Nut Streusel Topping (Nusstreusel)
    • Cut square of pizza as example of height and density of the easy pourable pizza crust.
      Easy Pourable Pizza Dough

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Statement
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Accessibility Statement

    Follow

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Instagram
    • Twitter

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Meet Me & Mr B

    Content on this website may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we earn from qualifying purchases. Please check out our privacy Policy for more details.

    Copyright © 2023 The Good Hearted Woman. All rights reserved.

    169 shares
    We Value Your Privacy
    We use cookies to make this website a better place. Cookies help to provide a more personalized experience and relevant advertising for you, and web analytics for us. To learn more about the different cookies we use, check out our Cookie Policy.
    Functional Always active
    The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
    Preferences
    The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
    Statistics
    The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
    Marketing
    The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
    Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
    View preferences
    {title} {title} {title}
    We Value Your Privacy
    We use cookies to make this website a better place. Cookies help to provide a more personalized experience and relevant advertising for you, and web analytics for us. To learn more about the different cookies we use, check out our Cookie Policy.
    Functional Always active
    The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
    Preferences
    The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
    Statistics
    The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
    Marketing
    The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
    Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
    View preferences
    {title} {title} {title}