Wauna Viewpoint from Eagle Creek Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Eagle Creek Day Use Trailhead
- End point: Wauna Viewpoint
- Trail Log: Trail Log
- Hike Type: Out and back
- Distance: 3.4 miles round trip
- Elevation gain: 1030 feet
- High point: 1,080 feet
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: Year round
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: No
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Hike Description
This is a short hike to a nice open perch at a powerline pylon 1000 feet above the Bonneville Dam area. There are broad views from here across to the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. The hike crosses Eagle Creek and uses the Gorge Trail to access the switchbacking Wauna Viewpoint Trail. Be warned that there are active slides near the very end of the hike. The area was severely impacted by the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire, and there are a lot of standing dead trees with a very brushy understory.
This hike starts at the Eagle Creek Day Use Trailhead. Walk to the right of the historic restrooms, known as "Big John", following an Eagle Creek Trail sign. Keep left at a staircase leading to Eagle Creek Lane, and then angle down on the paved trail through the picnic area. When you reach Eagle Creek Lane, you'll see the Eagle Creek Bridge ahead. After crossing the bridge, turn right at the other end. You'll hike through a cutting in a massive log, pass the Gorge-Shady Glen Trail Junction, and then switchback and ascend about 200 feet, rising high above Eagle Creek and its fish hatchery before turning left parallel to the Columbia River. Before long you'll pass a fenced overlook of Bonneville Dam. The conifers that once stood here were logged after the Eagle Creek Fire, so there are now clear views to Hamilton Mountain, Table Mountain and Greenleaf Peak.
The trail switchbacks here and makes an open traverse on the recently logged slope now overtaken by fireweed and trailing blackberry. You'll switchback again in woods scoured by an intense crown fire and, looking northeast now, you'll see the snowy summit of Mount Adams. Across Eagle Creek, rugged Ruckel Ridge rises to the Benson Plateau. A long, gradually rising traverse leads up to the junction with the Wauna Viewpoint Trail #402. A mossy concrete marker is embedded in the rock wall at the junction.
The Wauna Viewpoint Trail rises in six switchbacks to reach the destination of this hike. Fringe-cup and Oregon grape bloom trailside in the spring, and poison oak also flourishes here. You'll begin to see more of Mount Adams, with the Bridge of the Gods now also becoming visible. The entire complex fo the Bonneville Dam is spread below. A few large Douglas-firs that survived the Eagle Creek Fire provide a living canopy. (The area also experienced a fire in the 1990s.) The third switchback turns you below the basalt promontory of Wauna Viewpoint. When you come to the powerline corridor, you'll get a view west to Munra Point and the Columbia River. The trail threads between the legs of a powerline pylon and then passes the junction with the Wauna Powerline Trail. The last switchback turns up towards Wauna Viewpoint again. There's a tricky slide to cross, and then you'll reach the viewpoint at Pylon BDF 11, with its concrete pyramid and triangulation marker (Bradford 2 on topographical maps).
Wauna Viewpoint gives you an excellent vantage point of the Bridge of the Gods, the town of Stevenson, and Table Mountain. To the west of Table is Hamilton Mountain, with the distinct monolith Beacon Rock at its base. To the east of Table, is Greenleaf Peak. On a clear day, you'll see Mount Adams rearing over the hills to your northeast and Augspurger Mountain sloping towards the river. This is also probably the best view of the Bonneville Dam from above. Be sure to bring binoculars as you get a great bird's eye view of the two operating locks. Perhaps you'll be lucky enough to be there when a boat is passing through. Over a thousand feet straight above Wauna Viewpoint, the sheer, dark basalt prow of Wauna Point looms.
Despite the nice views and relatively easy approach, the Wauna Viewpoint Trail suffers from quite a bit of road noise from the interstate (I-84), and the summit is marred by the constant buzz of the power lines. However, it is a nice choice for families who are looking for alternatives to Angels Rest and other familiar fare.
Fees, Regulations, etc.
- Northwest Forest Pass (or America the Beautiful Pass) required
- Dogs on leash
- Limited parking; trailhead gets full early on weekends
- Restrooms, picnic area, campground, interpretive signs
- Cascade Fish Hatchery open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
- Green Trails Maps: Bonneville Dam, OR #429
- Green Trails Maps: Columbia River Gorge - West #428S
- Geo-Graphics: Trails of the Columbia Gorge
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service/Bureau of Land Management: Columbia River Gorge
- National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map: Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Wauna Viewpoint from Eagle Creek Hike
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Wauna Viewpoint from Eagle Creek Hike
Guidebooks that cover this hike
- Afoot & Afield: Portland/Vancouver by Douglas Lorain
- Hiking the Columbia River Gorge by Russ Schneider; revised by Jim Yuskavitch
- Day Hiking: Columbia River Gorge by Craig Romano
- Day Hike! Columbia Gorge by Seabury Blair, Jr.
- 35 Hiking Trails: Columbia River Gorge by Don & Roberta Lowe
- The Columbia Gorge: Short Trips and Trails by Oral Bullard & Don Lowe
- Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge: Camping & Hiking by Tom Stienstra & Sean Patrick Hill
More Links
- Gorge 400 Trail (USFS)
- Wauna Viewpoint Trail (#402) (USFS)
- Wauna Viewpoint Hike (Northwest Hiker)
- Wauna Viewpoint, OR (EyeHike)
- Wauna Viewpoint Trail (All Trails)
Contributors
- Stevefromdodge (creator)