Memaloose Falls and South Fork Clackamas River

[BrianEdwards]

Thanks, Tom. Appreciate the kind words. I think I'm gonna put this Memaloose stuff to rest for awhile and focus on other areas now. This spring though, I fully intend to hike the Hillock Burn trail down to the S Fork Clackamas River, and get a look at the upper-most falls. It looks like a nice photogenic spot, and it'll complete my tour of the Memaloose/S Fork waterways.

Anyway, thanks again Tom

-Brian

[HikingisaMustDo]

I'll be out there tomorrow, be there around 10am if anyone want's to join us.

[BrianEdwards]

Went back in here with MattisnotFrench on 6/5. (Matt nice meeting you btw ) The tick's are definitely out in force at the moment, as Matt had 4 and I had 3. Otherwise it was a great day.

Memaloose


Clackamas Falls


Wide


Lower


Thanks again Matt for a great day.

-Brian

(I realize this thread is already huge, but I think it's best to keep these reports consolidated, and not plug up the off-trail forum)

[Splintercat]

Nice shot of Memaloose, Brian! Great day to be out there -- good light for photography for most of the day, albeit a bit bright at times. Ticks..? Well, that's not good... I've never picked one up outside the Gorge (and in the Gorge, I've picked them up in several spots, from Eagle Creek east to the Rowena area).

Tom

[mattisnotfrench]

Tom, it gets worse - the ticks are mean and aggressive. I ended up with 7 ticks (3 stowed away with me for a few hours). I still get the heebie jeebies thinking about them and it has me thinking about keeping a very close eye on one of the bites. A friend of mine was recently diagnosed with Lyme disease and I'll never think the same way about ticks again. UGH.

There was a bit of poison oak too. Hoping I managed to avoid that stuff, though I didn't see much.

On the whole though, it was an outstanding day! Brian, it was awesome to head down there with you. We'll have to hunt waterfalls again sometime soon when we both have a free day.

I haven't had much of a chance to go through my photos but I did cobble together one of my panoramas that puts you right on the precipice looking to Clackamas Falls. I LOVE how this turned out:



I'll post more when I get a chance.

[Splintercat]

Ugh... seven ticks..?? That's not good at ALL, Matt..!

Agreed on the Lyme Disease. I'm obsessive about checking/removing any as soon as I'm home after a trip. In fact, it kinda worries me when I think about people backpacking in places like the Rogue River, where they could easily miss a tick, and go past the 36-48 hour window for getting them out.

Great pano, Matt, and in fact, it looks like it might have been shot from the same spot as this early 1960s view:



...which means the tunnel (and bridge) are just to the right in this old view..?

-Tom

[DirkDE]

Hi Brian - we read all your posts from 2010. Just an amazing trip and documentation. We were just up in the area yesterday and are interested in completing this hike. Do you have any updates since 2010? I know there are a lot of areas up that way that have been closed off due to people littering, damaging the environment, leaving trash, and major target practicing. Any new updates or insights you might have since 2010 would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
Dirk

[BrianEdwards]

Welcome Dirk.

I'm in that area frequently, and can say that access to the falls on the spur road is open and relatively unchanged.

Get there early'ish, cause target shooters sometimes are setup on the berm shooting towards the spur. The first 200 ft of the old spur is full of shooter debris, but once past, its a great experience.

Post photos if you go!

-Brian

[Lydiavmars]

I wanted to add to this topic, because my friends and I hiked this 03/31/2014 and it went amazingly well. After the Forest Service instituted a no shooting section for the first 6.8 miles you don't have to worry about getting shot at. Whomever put in the ropes to clamber down to the creekside I thank you. They were amazing for the climb back up.

However three things: 1. When the water is high getting to see the tall falls near the log bridge is hard. We did not do this. 2. I didn't cross the log bridge because it was so slippery I'm sure I would have fallen to my death. My friends and I want to go back and tack some roofing tiles into the logs to give it some traction. 3. I also didn't clamber to the first falls due to the water levels. So, if you want to do this in Late Winter/Early Spring keep an eye on water levels. It can be scary. Every time I've driven by lately there are cars there on the weekend, so that trail is very traversed.

I'm also planning on scouting from the Hillockburn end soon. But we'll see.

Here's some of the pictures I got during the day:

[BrianEdwards]

Nice!

Thanks for sharing. Neat area.

I concor about the popularity. Just last weekend there were two cars parked there when I drove by.