Wahkeena Falls (6/3/11)

With spin class Wednesday, a 4-mile run Thursday, the Starlight Run Saturday and a 9-miler planned for Sunday, Friday was supposed to be a rest day. But when Dad called and asked if I wanted to go hiking, I threw good sense to the wind and planned a trip to Wahkeena Falls in the Gorge.

We left Tigard at 3 p.m., hoping to beat traffic. No such luck. It took us about 90 minutes to reach the trailhead. The warm Friday afternoon drew lots of people to the trail, but there were still a couple parking spots. YAY!

Wahkeena Falls is less than a quarter-mile from the car.
The first part of the trail is paved, leading to this gorgeous lookout:
Then you hit the dirt trail, hiking up the drainage next to the creek. Thankfully, it was nice and cool in the shade next to the water.
Then Fairy Falls:
Soon, we'd covered the 1.6 miles to the top and had a little rest/snack break.
We took a short detour to nearby Wahkeena Springs, where the water flows right from hillside.

We decided to return via the Vista Point trail, .4 miles from our rest stop.
The Vista Point trail is 1.9 miles from the car and joins back in to the Wahkeena Falls trail above Fairy Falls. Beautiful scenery.
Wahkeena Falls again:
It was a nice afternoon to get out and stretch our legs. I'm glad Dad called and invited me out :)