A Winter Hike to Dry Creek Falls

This winter the mountain snowfall has been slow to come.  Our local ski resorts, which are usually open by mid to early December, stayed closed until nearly Christmastime.  Although the mountains got moisture in early January, it fell as rain, shrinking what little snowpack they had.

What's a bunch of die-hard skiers to do?  Go take a hike!

Bridge over Herman Creek

So one day in early January I rallied my skiing and hiking friends Young and John, as well as my dear hubby, for a hike in the Columbia River Gorge.

Lovely Herman Creek

Not only had this winter's unseasonably warm and rainy weather been tough on the snowpack, it also wreaked havoc in the Columbia River Gorge.  A series of "atmospheric rivers" (torrential amounts of warm rain) in December triggered landslides which damaged several Gorge trails.  Luckily, the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) near the town of Cascade Locks was still intact, and became my hike of choice for the day.  The plan was to travel westward from the Herman Creek Trailhead, intercept the PCT and follow it to Dry Creek Falls, a lovely cascade located at the end of an impressive basalt canyon.

Fern-lined trail

After a week of nearly constant rainfall, the day of my hike dawned to cloudy, but dry skies.  The forecast called for rain later in the day, so my friends and I made sure to bring rain jackets and covers for our backpacks just in case.  From the trailhead, we sauntered for a mile through a forest full of large ferns and moss-covered trees.

Brilliant green moss brightened the forest

Our trail brought us downhill to a crossing of Herman Creek via a large wooden bridge.  From mid-span my friends had a great vantage of the water below.  Swollen by recent rainfall the creek was churning mightily, swirling around large boulders, a beautiful chaos of blue and white rapids.

Foggy mountains rose above us

From the bridge it was an uphill slog to our junction with the PCT.  Although the distance was probably only a half mile, it seemed to take forever.  Good thing there was a lovely, mossy forest to distract us from our misery.

Photo ops from the trail

Once we reached the PCT it was a fairly level trek through several talus slopes and foggy woods.  In one area tall, green mountains towered prominently above the trail.  In another the trees parted to give cloudy peek-a-boo views of the Columbia River.

Hikers in action

After a bit of walking my friends and I came to a creek crossing the trail.  Although there wasn't a bridge or a log to use, the creek was small enough we could make it across with a bit of creative rock hopping.

Crossing a small creek

Looking uphill of the crossing, I could see a waterfall sandwiched in the narrow canyon above.  This cascade was called Pacific Crest Falls, the name a nod to the trail in which its outflow crossed.

Pacific Crest Falls

Just around the bend from the creek crossing was an interesting area where several large pointed rock pillars rose mysteriously above the trail.  These unusual formations were called the "Herman Creek Pinnacles."  Thick fog in the area gave the pinnacles an especially ghostly atmosphere.

Foggy Herman Creek Pinnacles

After a few photos of this most unusual area, my friends and I continued down the PCT.  There were a few up and downs and more mossy woods cloaked in thick fog.  But lucky for us, the skies were staying dry so far.

It was a very foggy day!

There are two ways to access Dry Creek Falls.  One is from the east, taking the PCT from the Herman Creek Trailhead (our day's chosen hike) and the other, shorter route, following the PCT from the west trailhead at Cascade Locks.  Naturally, the shorter route was much more popular.  

Back along the trail

My friends and I hadn't encountered many hikers thus far, but this all changed once we reached the junction with the short side trail to Dry Creek Falls.  After crossing Dry Creek via an elaborate wooden footbridge, we took the spur trail uphill to the waterfall.  This trail was full of people, all coming from the west, and all heading for the same destination.

Taking the side trail to Dry Creek Falls

Dry Creek Falls is one of the Gorge's many spectacular waterfalls.  Located in the end of a tall canyon of columnar basalt, its approach is most dramatic.  Recent heavy rainfall had washed a huge pile of logs into the creek directly below and eroded some of the bank area.

Dry Creek Falls

Reaching the waterfall my friends and I took a few photo ops, then crossed to the opposite side of the creek and found a place on the bank for a lunch break.  We entertained ourselves by watching people come and go.  Some just walked up and snapped a few pictures, while others clambered over the washed out riverside area in an attempt to get a closer vantage.  With the unstable soil and precarious log pile, I was fearful we'd witness someone slip and fall - but thankfully nothing happened.

Lunch spot

It was nice to have a break - especially in such a beautiful place!  The mossy, basalt cliffs were so interesting and scenic.  Dry Creek Falls is of my favorite Gorge waterfall locations.

PCT bridge spanning Dry Creek

After finishing our lunches, my friends and I shouldered our backpacks, and retraced our steps back down the spur trail and across the PCT footbridge.  Once on the other side, the amount of hikers dropped off dramatically.  We nearly had the trail to ourselves again.

One of many large talus slopes

Then it was just a matter of following the PCT back to the Herman Creek trail.  By the time we crossed the talus slopes again, the clouds cloaking the Columbia River views had lifted and I was treated to a much better river vantage.

Columbia River view

Once back at the trailhead, we ended our day with a beer at a local pub in the nearby town of Cascade Locks.  My friends and I had covered a little over 9 miles and 2100 feet of elevation gain.  And best of all - the forecasted rain had held off the entire time!

A great hike!

I guess if I can't ski, at least there are beautiful trails close to home that I can hike.  But do I love skiing so I'm hoping the snow gods will pull through soon with a big mountain blizzard.  Time to do some more snow dances!