Latourell Falls

Latourell Falls is the lower waterfall on Latourell Creek, in Guy W. Talbot State Park beside the Historic Columbia River Highway. It drops more than 220 feet over a broad face of columnar basalt, streaked with bright chartreuse lichen. That rock wall makes the falls easy to recognize even before you reach its base. A short paved path slips under the highway’s 1914 bridge and ends at a footbridge by the plunge, where the creek and spray are close. For a quick Gorge stop, this is enough: you get right up to a tall waterfall without committing to the forest loop. Upper Latourell Falls lies farther up the creek and is a separate cascade, reached on a longer walk.

The lower falls alone is about a one-mile round trip on a paved path, described as accessible. It runs beneath the old highway bridge to the creek footbridge, then back. To reach Upper Latourell Falls, take the steeper route from the main highway trailhead. The state describes that hike as about two miles: it climbs through dense forest, crosses four small wooden bridges, follows Latourell Creek to the falls, then returns along the opposite bank. This upper falls has two drops, with a blocky upper tier partly hidden above a plunge into a pool.

There is also a longer, roughly three-mile circuit that visits both waterfalls and returns to the eastern parking area. The mileage changes with the route and parking area you choose. Expect some rocky footing and a highway crossing on the longer circuit; choose the paved lower path if you want the waterfall without a moderate hike.

The lower falls is a sheer sheet of water over closely spaced basalt columns. Look past the white water for the vivid lichen on the wall. From the base footbridge, leave some of the creek rocks in the bottom of a photo and keep the full cliff above them; that gives the vertical drop a sense of scale. The bridge overhead is part of the place, not just a way through: it dates to 1914 and once carried the old highway across the creek.

Guy Webster and Geraldine Talbot used the land as a summer estate before giving the original 125 acres to Oregon in 1929. The upper falls and part of its trail lie in George W. Joseph State Natural Area, formed from land donated by the Joseph family in 1934 and 1942. The lower picnic grounds and wooded creek route make this more than a roadside photo stop, even if you only have time for the short walk.

The falls are reached from the Historic Columbia River Highway. A day-use parking permit is required and can be bought on site. If the main highway lot is full, there is alternate parking at Lower Guy W. Talbot State Park, beside the covered picnic shelter; that changes where you start. Flush restrooms and picnic facilities are available at the park. Bring food and water for the trail, and allow more time if you plan to visit both falls. The short lower route is the gentler option; the upper and full-loop routes have steeper, rockier sections.