Revision as of 06:15, 18 December 2006

Punchbowl Falls

Metlako Falls, from a short spur trail

Some areas may be a bit treacherous for small children

Map, GPS track in jpeg format

Info

• Start point: Eagle Creek Trailhead
• End point: Punchbowl Falls
• Distance: 4 miles (round trip)
• Elevation Gain: 400 feet
• Difficulty: Easy to moderate
• Seasons: Year round
• Backpackable: No
  • (but there are backpacking options further up trail)
• Crowded: Yes
• Family Friendly: Yes (children 10 and up)
  • (Due to the relatively short distance and moderate elevation gain, this might seem a nice choice for children , but parents are cautioned that the trail overlooks cliffs in two sections early on, with only a guard wire for support)

Hike Description

Eagle Creek is the quintessential hike in the Columbia River Gorge, boasting dozens of spectacular waterfalls, tall basalt cliffs, ubiquitous talus slopes, and the lush temperate rain forests that so characterize the Pacific Northwest. It is considered by many to be the most resplendent hiking destinations in the Northwest -- no doubt, essential fare for Portland-area outdoor lovers.

What makes Eagle Creek even more popular, is the number of ways one can enjoy it! There are options that can take 3 hours to 3 days depending on how far you go! In fact, one could literally hike to Mexico starting from the Eagle Creek trailhead because 13 miles in it intersects with the Pacific Crest Trail. In fact many PCT thru-hikers will choose to divert their usual course over the Benson Plateau to take in the splendid beauty of the Eagle Creek gorge.

The Eagle Creek to Punchbowl Falls hike is one of the shorter options, but it gives you a fair sampling of what you might see on a longer alternative.

Starting at the trailhead, which can be zoo-like on summer weekends you take the wide well-groomed trail into a second-growth forest turning away from the creek, but just as quickly you turn back toward the water, with the trail hugging the shore for quite a ways.

You will go in and out of the forest a bit with the ever-present ambient sound of rushing water to accompany you. Before you've gone a mile you will start to take on elevation. Soon, you will encounter the first of many areas of the trail that rise high above the creek, opening up to a wide canyon on your right. Many months the fog hangs low in the canyons blocking your view of the snow-encrusted sides of the cliff all around you. In places the trail is narrow and the drop-off is quite steep. You'll notice area where the trail-builders had to use explosives to carve the passage-way into the cliffs. On a few of these sections, cable lines have been built into the walls to provide some stability.

As the trail gains elevation it begins to get further from the creek and deeper into the moss-covered old-growth forest. Your companions will be the thousands of ferns, blackberry bushes, and sometimes poison oak that are so characteristic of this region. You will be surprised at the beauty of these forests, which at-times are like scenes from a fairy tail.

There are various side-creeks that you'll cross -- some by rock steps, many by footbridges. Be sure to look upstream as you cross these - especially in the wetter months -- as you will be treated to waterfalls and more lush greenery.

After you've walked about a mile and a half, watch for an obvious spur trail off to your right. This unmarked trail drops down to an overlook with a view of the magnificent 100 foot Metlako Falls. The tallest falls on Eagle Creek, Metlako seeming shoots out straight of a cliffside into a large pool below.

Walk back up the spur trail to the main trail and continue Southward. In just over a half-mile you'll be at an obvious junction and resting spot. You are near your destination, Punchbowl Falls.

You can choose to take a spur trail down and to your right, or continue forward about 1/4 mile to the Punchbowl Falls overlook. The spur trail which takes you down about 300 feet in a 1/4 mile to a wide open rocky shoreline about 100 yards from the falls. In the summer months this can be a crowded swimming hole for children, but given the right weekday in the off season, this is a quaint setting can provide you some enchanted solitude as you admire the gushes of water blasting its way out the gorge above.

Should you choose to continue on, the overlook gives you a great vantage point of the falls looking straight down to the gushing waters and glorious blue pool below. You may recognize this viewpoint from photos of the area. Please stay inside the guardrails. Every year there is some story about someone falling from this spot and injuring themselves.

From this point you can turn around and had back the way you came. Should you still have energy and want to continue on, there is a lot more to see, including Loowit Falls (Eagle Creek), High Bridge and Tunnel Falls.

See these other hikes that give you longer alternatives:

• Eagle Creek to High Bridge Hike
• Eagle Creek to Tunnel Falls Hike
• Eagle Creek to Wahtum Lake Hike

Maps

• See clickable image to the right
• Hike Finder
• Topozone

Trip Reports

• Eagle Creek to Tunnel Falls 9/23/06 - 9/24/06
• Eagle Creek to Wahtum Lake, and Chinidere Mt 7/12/06 - 7/14/06

(Click here to add your own)

Related Discussions / Q&A

• (Click here to ask a question or start a conversation)

Guidebooks that cover this hike

• 100 Hikes in Northwest Washington - 2nd Edition, by William Sullivan

More Links

• See more information at Splintercat.org

Contributors

• jeffstatt