Return to Wahclella Falls

Wahclella Falls is my go-to waterfall.  Located in the Columbia River Gorge, it's a short drive and an even shorter hike along lovely Tanner Creek to access this silky little beauty.

Bridge and waterfall (from top of an adjacent boulder)

Yep, it's a good "bang for your buck" hike.  And in early July, still nursing a healing foot, it fit the bill for easing myself back into hiking.

Tanner Creek

Of course such a short, easy, accessible trail means it's also wildly popular, so I rose early that day, arriving at the trailhead by 7 am, to beat the masses.

Under bridge peek-a-boo

The trail follows beautiful, mossy Tanner Creek for a mile through an ever-narrowing canyon.  Even in July, the effects of our hot, dry summer could be seen.  The moss wasn't as green as usual.  It looked a little dry and brown around the edges.

Full falls view

But arriving at canyon's end, Wahclella Falls was as stunning as ever.  And there was still a decent amount of water tumbling through it's chasm.

Lovely mossy rocks

Trying to capture a different perspective of this cascade,  I spied a house-sized boulder towering over the creek.  It appeared others had climbed to it's top and taken photos from this perch.  Strapping my tripod to my backpack, I clambered onto an adjacent log, and scrambled along it's length.

Another photographic angle

From the log, I then had about a 15 foot climb up the face of this boulder.  I gingerly dug my toes into tiny clefts in the rock and grasped onto tree roots, and other handholds.  At one point, I began to question my sanity for trying to scale this boulder (with a recovering foot, no less!) but in the end, I finally heaved myself on top.

Tall cliffs

From my perch on the boulder's apex, the views weren't too bad.  But the waterfall still hid behind the bridge slightly.  No matter, I'd expended lots of energy (and adrenaline!) to get here, I was gonna get some photos!

Tiny wildflowers

After making lots of images from the boulder's summit, I carefully crawled back down it's face (even scarier than the climb up!)  I then prowled around the splash pool and bridge, trying for that money shot.

Picturesque Tanner Creek 

I really got lucky with the early hour visit.  I had the place to myself almost the entire time.  It was nice to be able to take photos without waiting for other people to move.  About 9 o'clock, when others began arriving, I took this as my cue to leave.

Creekside boulders

Wandering back along the return trail, I made a few stops to capture the beauty of Tanner Creek.  The large mossy rocks, and dense green foliage is scenic in any season, even a hot dry summer.

The last of the summer flowers

I spied these purple beauties near the trailhead.  Since our spring bloom had happened so early, I didn't expect to see any wildflowers.  So these were a bonus!

Gorgeous purple wildflowers

A peaceful early morning romp in the woods.  It was so nice to be out on the trail again. 


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