Amazing Autumn Day in the Gorge

Fall colors usually don't peak in the Columbia River Gorge until early November.  As many years as I've lived in NW Oregon you think I'd remember this.  But without fail, every autumn I cruise through the Gorge in late October, lamenting the lack of changing leaves.  2023 was no different - I thought for sure it was another dud year.

Upper Multnomah Falls surrounded by yellow

So after nearly giving up hope on getting any Gorge fall colors, guess what?  All the leaves turned on the second week of November.  That Sunday my friend Catherine and I decided to hike the Multnomah-Wahkeena Loop.  Imagine my surprise when I pulled up to the trailhead at Multnomah Falls and saw brilliant yellow leaves framing the famous cascade.  Wow!  This was gonna be a good day!

The entire Multnomah Falls

Our loop hike began at the base of Multnomah Falls.  Although I didn't think to bring my tripod, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to photograph the falls framed by such lovely autumn color.  I snapped several hand-held images of the famous waterfall as Catherine and I passed by on our way up the trail.  And in the end, think I liked them better than some of the long exposure shots I've taken in the past.  Using faster shutter speeds really highlighted the water's energy and motion.  

Upper Falls as I hiked by

The paved trail from the base of Multnomah Falls climbed steeply through 11 switchbacks before depositing us hikers at the top of the 620-foot high waterfall.  On the way up, I paused to take in a peek-a-boo glimpse of the mighty Columbia River framed by lots of golden vegetation.

Columbia River views

At the very top of our climb, the trail transitioned to dirt and began to follow lovely Multnomah Creek.

Multnomah Creek

This creek and surrounding area are beautiful in any season, but autumn is absolutely stunning.  When the leaves began their seasonal change, it's the very best time to hike this trail.

Scenic rushing water

Catherine and I followed the leaf-littered trail along the rushing creek, past one small waterfall.  

Approaching the next waterfall

The next grand waterfall was just ahead - hiding behind a bend in the trail.

Leaf-littered path

At 55 feet in height, Wiesendanger Falls was another elegant cascade along Multnomah Creek.  Named for a Forest Service ranger, it gushed over a moss-lined cliff.

Wiesendanger Falls

Beyond Wiesendanger Falls, the damage from the Gorge fire of 2017 became apparent.  Blackened trees lined the steep canyon walls.  But thankfully lots of undergrowth - bushes and wildflowers - have now grown back.  Their colorful fall leaves brightened the forest, making an otherwise bleak scene quite lovely.

Even the burned area looked good!

Who knew a former burn area could look so good?

Splash of red amongst the yellow

Winding through the ferns, moss, downed trees, and colorful leaves was Multnomah Creek, our constant companion as we climbed.

Babbling creek

A marvelous sight to behold!

More Multnomah Creek pics

The morning had started out rather foggy.  The higher Catherine and I climbed, the more fog we encountered.  We reached the junction with the Wahkeena Trail and turned to follow it.  Continuing on the Wahkeena Trail, our path veered away from Multnomah Creek and climbed upward out of its basin.  Fog hung thickly in the forest here.  

Sun rays breaking through the fog

Suddenly we noticed the skies starting to clear.  Rays of sunlight began to penetrate the fog, creating lovely light on the forest.  It felt like God himself was emerging from the clouds.

Looks like we're walking towards Heaven

After walking a mile or so, and admiring the sunbursts through the fog, we came upon another trail junction.  From here, our route would switchback downhill to Wahkeena Falls, and then intersect with a connector trail that would close the loop.

Catherine admiring the pretty leaves

After climbing most of the morning, the downhill grade was most welcome.  The bigleaf maples lining this trail put on quite a show - tall trees with huge leaves sporting bright yellow hues.  Catherine stopped to admire all that stunning color.

Fairy Falls

We passed by tiny Fairy Falls.  Having only a 20-foot drop, this cascade made up for its lack of height with loads of charm.  Water stair-stepped down several rock ledges, making the streams look like lacy bridal veils.  So enchanting - I half expected a gnome to leap out from behind the waterfall.

Wahkeena Creek

Our trail followed the white water of Wahkeena Creek as it tumbled downhill.  Framed by lots of bright green moss and more golden maple leaves, this charming water body kept my camera shutter clicking.

Lemmon Viewpoint

Catherine and I made a stop at Lemmon Viewpoint to get a panoramic glimpse of the Columbia River.  Fall colors were peaking on the Washington side, as evidenced by the checkerboard of green and gold on the opposite shore.

 

Colorful scene below Wahkeena Falls

Then it was steeply downhill on a paved path, past gushing Wahkeena Falls, to the large paved viewing area at the Historic Highway.  The creek here was lined with all hues of yellow and accented by some red leaves.

Gorge view on our way back

Catherine and I then hiked the final half mile trail, paralleling the Historic Highway, that would return us to Multnomah Falls and the parking area.  More "Gorge-ous" views awaited, and many photo stops delayed our journey.  But it was well worth it.  It's not every autumn one sees such vibrant colors in the Gorge, so I made sure to take full photographic advantage!

Hope you enjoyed this amazing autumn day in the Columbia River Gorge.

Fall Finery at Hoyt Arboretum

From late October until mid-November the trees around Portland and NW Oregon usually erupt in their finest fall colors.  This year was no exception.  Although for awhile the lack of turning leaves led me to believe we'd have a dud year, the first of November everything unexpectantly burst into their best and brightest hues.  I think we ended up having the most vibrant autumn I've seen in many years.

Mossy trunk and fall hues

While I took plenty of photos during the frenetic two week period when colors were at peak, I thought I'd first share some images from a morning walk in Portland's Hoyt Arboretum.

Roadside color

Just west of downtown Portland, Hoyt Arboretum is a unique place.  Located along a ridgetop in Washington Park, this 189 acre preserve features over 2,300 tree species from six different continents.  From forests of huge redwoods and to flowering dogwoods, 12 miles of hiking trails provide access to this biological treasure.

Colorful oak leaves

Although Hoyt Arboretum is lovely in any season, in my opinion fall is the absolute best time to visit.  Colorful leaves from the many diverse trees and shrubs provide a stunning backdrop.

Pretty red-orange leaves

In autumn, local photographers flock to the nearby Japanese Garden to capture images of a very colorful and iconic Japanese maple tree.  However, the morning I visited Hoyt Arboretum I saw only one other man with a camera.  And he was photographing the birds.

Lovely backlit leaves

I also passed by a couple of nice Japanese maple trees.  Maybe they weren't quite as stunning as The Tree at the Japanese Garden, but I also didn't have to wait in line to photograph them.

Japanese Maple tree without the crowds

This autumn walk through the Arboretum made me painfully aware of how little I know about trees.  I wish I was better at identifying the different species.  Something to work on for next year!

Yellow explosion

I admired a tree bursting with bright yellow leaves.

The ground was pretty as well

I enjoyed the leaf collection on the ground as well.

Nice place to sit and contemplate life

This park bench looked like a great place to sit and take in all the beauty.

More yellow beauty

I walked by another gigantic tree covered with more dazzling yellow leaves. 

Multi-colored eye candy

At one end of the Arboretum is a beautifully landscaped memorial to all the soldiers who died in the Vietnam War.  The tall trees surrounding this area were some of the loveliest - decked out in shades of orange, gold and yellow.

Stunning trees near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial

A great place for a fall ramble, I thoroughly enjoyed my November morning at Hoyt Arboretum.  Hope you enjoy it too.

Craters of the Moon NM

After spending two great, but jam-packed days at Yellowstone National Park, it was time for my buddy Kim and I to head back home to Oregon.  From town of West Yellowstone, Montana we had a full day of driving across Idaho to get to Boise, our destination for the night.  But I'd planned one more stop as we passed through the state.  Although Idaho didn't have any national parks, it did have an area of unique volcanic landscapes that had been designated a National Monument - Craters of the Moon.

First views

Located in a sparsely populated area of Southern Idaho, Craters of the Moon NM is a 750,000-acre geologic wonderland managed jointly by the National Parks Service and Bureau of Land Management.  Exposed fissures, lava fields, lava tubes, craters, and cinder cones form this strange, but scenic landscape smack-dab in the middle of Idaho's Snake River Plain.  The volcanic activity that created this weird wonderland began 15,000 years ago and continued until just 2,100 years from the present times.  

Barren landscape at Craters of the Moon

Although the majority of this national monument can only be accessed by primitive dirt roads, requiring a high-clearance, 4-wheel-drive vehicle, the National Parks Service maintains a visitor center, campground, and paved roadway through a small portion of the area.  This was our destination.

Kim poses by a huge lava rock

After driving two hours westward from Idaho Falls, through an extremely sparsely populated area, Kim and I finally reached the visitor center.  We stopped to get maps and use the restroom before setting out on a quick tour of the National Monument.

Rough lava outcrop

I decided to drive the short loop road and stop wherever something interested us.  The loop road had seven numbered stops (the first one being the visitor center.)  Kim and I first pulled over at the North Crater Flow Trailhead and gazed out on the vast plain of chunky, cooled lava rocks.  Beyond the rough immediate landscape, green foothills stretched away to a few snowy peaks that anchored the skyline.

Lava plain

I read that this inhospitable landscape had provided a training ground for the Apollo 11 astronauts in 1969.  At the time scientists believed that the barren, rocky plains closely resembled similar conditions astronauts would encounter when they landed on the moon.

I was surprised to see so many wildflowers

By now it was midday and the sun beat down.  With no shade to speak of and dark lava rocks reflecting the heat, Kim and I didn't linger long.  

The second stop on our drive was the Devils Orchard Nature Trail.  Only a half mile in distance, Kim and I decided to take a stroll, despite the heat.

Pretty yellow wildflowers

Devils Orchard was created about two thousand years ago when rivers of lava transported huge chunks of a crater wall into the area.  Time passed and the rocks eroded, creating soil to nurture the plants and trees that now grow.  Rabbitbrush and limber pines are the predominant vegetation.  The "orchard" name came from the fact that more plant life grows here than in other parts of the monument.

Lots of dead trees here!

We certainly saw lots of greenery.  And wildflowers!  I'm sure the early June timing of our visit had something to do with that.

Devils Orchard Trail

As we walked along the paved path through Devils Orchard I noticed a lot of gray, dead trees.  Not sure why there were so many.  It could be due to the rough climate conditions here in southern Idaho.  Rainfall is scant and weather extreme - scorching hot in the summer and bitter cold in winter.  And I'm sure the thin volcanic soil isn't enough to support very tall trees.

Lovely wildflowers

I particularly loved these pretty pink wildflowers (not sure of the name.)  They are apparently a very hardy variety, as I spotted a few blooms sprouting from a crack in the nearby lava rock.

Wildflowers growing in the rock

Finishing up our short hike at Devils Garden, Kim and I hopped back into the blissful car air conditioning and continued our drive.  The road wound upward around a feature called Paisley Cone to the next stop on the drive, a tall barren hill named Inferno Cone.

Paisley Cone

At the Inferno Cone parking area I noticed a flat plain of lava soil.  It was barren except for thousands of tiny plants dotting the area.  I'm sure in other seasons this area is in fact devoid of vegetation.  We were lucky to arrive in late spring when everything was growing.

Barren lava plain

Inferno Cone was a steep, conical hill made of volcanic ash and cinder.  These lava fragments were expelled via explosive eruptions from a single vent.  As gas charged lava was blown violently into the air, it broke into small fragments that solidified and fell as cinders around the vent to form a symmetrical cone.  I later read that Inferno Cone is unique because unlike other cinder cones, it does not have a crater at its summit.

Inferno Cone

Although the quarter mile hiking trail to Inferno Cone's summit was supposed to feature spectacular views, Kim and I took one look at the steep, gravelly user path and decided to skip it.  We felt temperatures were much too hot to attempt this shadeless trail.

Mountain views

After snapping a few images of Inferno Cone's dramatic, barren slopes, we piled back into the car for a short drive to the next stop on our Craters of the Moon tour, Spatter Cones.

Spatter Cone

The Spatter Cones were two miniature volcanoes with short trails around their cones, enabling visitors to walk to their center vents.  These small hills were formed when lumps of lava exploded into the air before falling back down around the vent they were ejected from.  As the molten blobs cooled, they formed the Spatter cones' irregular walls.

Looking towards the Snow Cone from Spatter Cone

The Spatter Cones trails were short, so Kim and I decided to check things out.  We walked up a paved path that transitioned into a curbed platform.  The main vent area was fenced, to keep overly curious visitors from falling in.

Trail to the Snow Cone

We noticed a third chunky hill beside the Spatter Cones.  A sign indicated this was named the "Snow Cone."  There was a trail leading to it, so Kim and I followed the path.

The rocky edges of Snow Cone

Looking into another fenced-off abyss, we immediately discovered why this particular feature was called the "Snow Cone."  Deep inside the volcano's inactive vent was a large patch of snow.  I later read that this vent is so deep that snow resides at the bottom year-round.

Snow Cone is appropriately named!

Although there were still a few other stops along the park road, by now we'd spent nearly two hours at Craters of the Moon, and still had a long drive ahead of us to Boise.  So Kim and I skipped visiting several lava tube caves and some more large cinder cones.  I guess this means I'll have to come back again when I have a bit more time to further explore this unusual place.

Lava selfie

But I was glad I'd taken the time to stop at this unique National Monument.  Another one to check off the list!  Now to head for Boise, and the next day home.  

I hope you enjoyed this recap of my late spring trip across the great plains and Pacific NW.  Now I'll have to get busy and post all the fall color photos I've been capturing.