Latourell Falls Hike

Hiking Latourell Falls

On my first hike on my first visit to Oregon, I found myself along the Columbia River Gorge. I drove around the Historic Columbia River Highway and was just amazed by how green and lush everything was. I was finally able to find parking at Latourell Falls, knowing nothing about it. As I began my hike I soon discovered that this might be one of the prettiest hikes I have been on. It includes two magnificent waterfalls and some of the prettiest flora I have seen!

Getting Started

Latourell Falls is one of the stops along the historic highway, just a short ways from the Vista House. There are several waterfall pull-offs around the area but I was surprised at how busy they all were. I was finally able to get parking at Latourell. Latourell has a couple of options to see the main falls without much effort. There is a staircase that leads to a nice overlook and a dirt path outside the parking lot that takes you to the bottom of the falls. Those are quick trips but if you want to do the whole loop, grab a pack and some good hiking shoes and head up the stairs!

Lower Falls

There are two easy ways to get to the lower falls and both provide some really amazing views. The first, and most common way, is to just walk up the staircase right from the parking lot. The top of the staircase gives a wonderful overlook of the 224 foot single stream falls. It is really amazing to see the water column just fall so perfectly to the ground below. The surrounding foliage gives the feel of tropical paradise just a short distance from the Columbia RIver.

Another option is to take the path to the right of the parking lot about a tenth of a mile that takes down to the base of the falls for a really impressive view of the towering drop. This location has a bit of access down towards the collecting pool that some people went down to. I stuck to the trail and observed from a really cool bridge that is just across from the falls. Either option provides rally great view of Latourell Falls with just a short walk from the car!

The Loop

For those looking for a bit of a longer hike, and a bit of a surprise, you can always take the loop. The loop can be accessed from either Latourell Falls viewing area. I started at the overlook and finished at the lower section but you could easily try either direction.

From the overlook, the trail hugs the side of the cavern and makes its way even with the top of the falls. It then makes its way towards Latourell Creek and winds its way up the hill. It was actually surprisingly steep with some area’s getting up to a 21% incline grade. I was astounded at just how green and lush the whole area was. Coming from a dry climate of Colorado, it was really nice to see all the thick growth in the woods. The humidity, I wasn’t quite as excited about!

After about one mile on the trail you come to the big surprise. There is a second waterfall at the apex of the loop. The second one isn’t as tall but it is just as cool! After the second waterfall, there is about another mile and a half to finish up the loop. Along the way there is a great overlook of the Columbia River and you will cross over the roadway and down to the state park before making your way back to one of the coolest bridges before making your way back up to the base of the main Latourell Falls!

Upper Falls

My favorite part of the hike was the upper falls. This waterfall at the top of the loop of the trail is smaller than the lower fall. About half as high, around 120 feet. But these falls had an easy path to get behind the water, which is always my favorite thing to do at waterfalls!

One of the other reasons that I really liked these upper falls is that I had them to myself for the most part. While the lower falls were packed with people, not as many make the trek up to the upper falls and I had plenty of time to myself and only one other group made their way while I was there. It was so peaceful and beautiful and a great welcome to the state of Oregon!

Views and Cool Things

The rest of the hike had some very cool things to look at as well. One was the overlook. Through the trees, a beautiful vista of the Columbia River. For most of the hike, the river isn’t visible and then all of a sudden there was this great view of the massive waterway in all its glory just waiting through the trees.

There was also some very cool vegetation. I really liked this tree that was about two-thirds of the way through the hike. Nothing was stopping nature here. The tree curled nearly back to the ground before growing straight up and just as tall as the surrounding woods. On hikes, where so much looks alike, and at the same time completely unique, this tree really stood out!

Video of the hike to Latourell Falls

I have put this time-lapse video together of hiking to Latourell Falls so other hikers can get a feel of what the hike is like. If you enjoy this video make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel. It is free to subscribe and you will get the latest outdoor content.

Distance and Elevation for the hike to Latourell Falls

If you don’t have the AllTrails app you might want to check it out, I really love mine. It records your progress and is a great way to search for hikes that are nearby and gives you difficulty measurements. According to AllTrails today’s hike was around 2.7 miles and had a total elevation gain of about 673 feet including undulations. That put the high point at around 704 feet. I was also moving for a total of 1 hour and 9 minutes.

I am a Pro member of AllTrails and love it. If you are interested in the platform, please consider using my affiliate link for AllTrails. It gives me a small commission with no extra cost to you.

Effort

For those of you who are just looking for a quick look at an impressive waterfall, the lower falls are really easy to get to. There is a concrete staircase that leads you to a really nice viewpoint and you can really enjoy it from there. For those who are looking to do the hiking loop, the trail extends and gets a bit steeper. Almost 700 feet of elevation for the loop could be a challenge for some. I am going to rate the full hike as Moderate.

Terrain

To get to the lower falls, there is a concrete staircase and well maintained walkway depending on if you are looking for the viewpoint or to get closer to the falls. If you want to hike the entire loop, the trail does get a bit steeper and more narrow and rustic as you move towards the second fall. I would suggest a good hiking shoe with decent traction to help with the damp and narrow track.

Access to the Latourell Falls Hike

Latourell Falls is one of several waterfalls on the historic Columbia River highway. The road is narrow and winds its way up to the top of the cliff and back down between Corbett and Bridal Veil Falls. There is a decent amount of parking but on my trip it was an extremely busy area and all of the parking was full. Please be careful while driving on the road as many pedestrians are close to the road at times.

Wrapping up the Latourell Falls Hike

What an amazing introduction to hiking in Oregon! I honestly thought that I was only going to see the first waterfall, which was really impressive but they I was able to see the second falls at the top of the loop and it made for one great hike!

One great part of Latourell falls is that the lower falls is accessible to most skill and fitness levels. I saw every age group and families enjoying the lower falls. The rest of the loop is a little more challenging but shouldn’t be bad for those who are accustomed to hiking. But it is great that such an amazing place is available to so many people!

I have added this hike and all of my hikes to the interactive map page you can find here. If you have any suggestions for hikes or comments feel free to email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com or you can follow me on any of the below social media platforms. Happy Hiking!

Gallery of the Latourell Falls Hike