Revision as of 17:03, 26 November 2009

Cougar Rock in the late afternoon (Jeff Statt)

Looking East toward Beacon Rock (Jeff Statt)

Looking down Elevator Shaft (Jeff Statt)

The base of Elevator Shaft at Trail 400 (Jeff Statt)

Map of the Elevator Shaft and Multnomah Basin area

• Start point: Multnomah Falls Trailhead
• End Point: Cougar Rock
• Trail Log : Trail Log
• Hike Type: Loop
• Distance: 6.7 miles (depending on options)
• Elevation gain: 1860 feet
• Difficulty: Difficult
• Seasons: Apr-Oct
• Family Friendly: No. Stony scramble & poison-oak
• Backpackable: Yes
• Crowded: No

Hike Description

This hike has a little bit of every kind of trail, from paved, well-graded tourist trap to a scramble up a talus slope. The main attraction of the hike is the Elevator Shaft (also known as the "Fire Escape"). Various hiking guides show it to be lost, found, or even "not as lost as it once was." Plan ahead, wear good boots for the rocks, long pants for the poison-oak, and plan on working hard.

The hike starts at the Multnomah Falls Trailhead. Hike up the Larch Mountain Trail #441 to the Benson Bridge, along with scores of day hikers and tourists. About 1/2 mile from the lodge, you'll come to a switchback where the unpaved Gorge Trail #400 connects. Continue east on the Gorge Trail, signed the "Ak-Wanee Trail." In about another half-mile of generally flat walking, you'll come to a large talus slope. This is the base of the Elevator Shaft, where the fun begins!

The talus slope is not hard to find, but the trail is. What seems like the obvious start is actually about 40 feet to the left (east) of where you should. Look for a nearly buried chain-link fence and climb above it and to the right. There is an old trail here but it's hard to detect amid the moss-covered rocks.

It's easy to suspect that the Elevator Shaft is limited to what you can see from the Gorge Trail, as the scree meets a solid bank of trees and low brush about 300 feet above. Were it just this, it would still be an impressive climb. However, once you work your way through a tangle of poison-oak and blackberry bushes, the forest scrub relents to another wide-open scree slope more than twice as high as the first — you have nearly 700 feet to go!

This main section of the Elevator Shaft is series of short, faint switchbacks. Local climbers have counted the switchbacks in excess of a hundred. Years of cross-cutting have made the trail sometimes indistinguishable amid the rocks. If possible, do your best to resist the temptation to head straight uphill — your hiking is the only maintenance this trail gets!

When you've reached about halfway up the visible section of the shaft, keep your eye out to the left — you'll start to see the remains of a large and quite violent landslide, a powerful reminder of what it is you're standing on.

Unless you're in incredibly good shape, it likely will take you more than an hour to get to the top of the rockslide. From here, the unofficial trail enters to the forest off to the right (west) at the top — take a moment to see if you can locate it before simply continuing uphill. And before entering the forest, don't forget to look behind you. Archer Mountain is the peak directly across the river. You're now high above Gorge Trail 400 and Interstate 84, and you've gained about 1,000 vertical feet in less than a half-mile.

Upon entering the forest, you may be surprised to find that your climb is far from over. In fact, you have another 700 vertical feet to gain before reaching the ridgecrest of Multnomah Basin. It's not quite a quarter-mile and some strenuous hiking before you get to a trail junction. The trail heading to the right (west) continues for about a 1/3 mile to an overlook towering above Multnomah Falls and the river. Experienced climbers can down-climb and pick up a light path that connects to the Larch Mt. Trail near the Multnomah Falls Upper Viewpoint. However, most hikers should not attempt this highly dangerous cutoff.

After visiting the overlook, backtrack uphill — the trail is fairly visible amid the forest brush, but it's plenty steep as well until you reach the ridge near 1,800 ft. Depending on conditions and time of year, this trail can be hard to follow, making a GPS and map valuable equipment, while a compass on this hike is mandatory in all seasons (always bear in mind that the Larch Mt. Trail — your exit — crosses to the south).

After cresting the ridge, you'll be on the north edge of the Multnomah Basin and eventually meet up with an unmarked, unmapped east-west trail. Follow it eastward. This is an area rich with history, so watch for evidence of old homesteads. There also are several blazes hung from limbs along the route, which should be observed and followed with care.

Continue heading east for another half-mile or so to a junction with a path headed north, down the hill. This path switches down steeply toward Cougar Rock. There really isn't a trail once you get to the ridgeline. There are two options. Follow the top of the ridgeline, which is a bit of a scramble to its end. You'll have a bird's-eye view looking straight down. Perhaps the better option is to find a light path that heads downhill, to the right of the ridge, to a great viewpoint to the northeast of the rock (pictured on this page). There is no way to get out on the rock itself.

After taking in the view, backtrack west to that first trail junction. From there, you can head south and then east on the trail for about a quarter-mile to a junction with the Multnomah Basin Road. The basin road is closed to most traffic, but it's open to hikers and mountain bikers. The Trails Club of Oregon owns a rustic and very picturesque lodge near here called Nesika Lodge, which can be reached by following the Multnomah Basin Road east. The property and lodge is closed to the public, but the club hosts weekends from time to time when they invite visitors.

For this hike, turn right and walk generally southwest along the level road for 1/4 mile, watching for an unmistakable hairpin turn. An unsigned path cuts off from the road at this point, switchbacking down to the Larch Mountain Trail and a sign indicating that you're 1.5 miles from Multnomah Falls. (Should you somehow miss the cutoff trail, eventually you'll come to a crossing of Larch Mt. Trail itself, where you'll turn right.) Now that you're back on an official USFS trail, you can hike north past Ecola Falls, Weisendanger Falls, and numerous other scenic spots, including the Multnomah Falls Upper Viewpoint. Follow the paved trail #441 back to the Multnomah Falls Lodge and your car.

Maps

• Maps: Hike Finder

Fees, Regulations, etc.

• None

Trip Reports

• Search Trip Reports for Cougar Rock

Related Discussions / Q&A

• Search Trail Q&A for Cougar Rock

Guidebooks that cover this hike

• 50 Hiking Trails Portland and Northwest Oregon by Don and Roberta Lowe

More Links

• Trails Club of Oregon
• Big and Little Cougar Rock

Contributors

• Stevefromdodge (creator)
• Jeffstatt
• RSDW