Triple Falls Hike

Overview

The hike to Triple Falls takes you up the Oneonta Gorge, almost always on a steep slope and, in a couple of places, prone to perennial slides. Once you get above the gorge itself, you'll be hiking in an area severely burned in the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire. The fire raged along the creek and, at least until Triple Falls, there is no longer a forest canopy. The waterfall remains one of the most popular destinations in the Columbia River Gorge, and a new bridge was installed over Oneonta Creek in 2021 if you're interested in hiking farther up this wilderness valley (see the Larch Mountain via Oneonta Trail Hike). Starting from the Oneonta Trailhead, the Oneonta Trail rises, paralleling the old highway and then crossing a slide gully that seems to reinvent itself every winter. When you reach the Oneonta-Gorge Trail Junction, make a left and traverse to get good views across the Columbia River to Archer Mountain. You'll recross the slide gully, passing below a flimsy perennial waterfall dripping over a mossy cliff. The trail drops below a basalt pinnacle, offering more views across the river. As you hike above a brushy bench, you'll notice a trail leading down which offers an overlook of the mouth of the Oneonta Gorge. Here, the main trail turns up the gorge, entering an area of scorched snags and views to the narrow cleft of the lower box canyon. After passing a trailside spring, you'll reach the junction where the Horsetail Falls Trail #438 heads downhill to the Middle Oneonta Falls and the first Oneonta Creek Bridge. From the junction, the Oneonta Trail passes a wilderness permit box and a sign indicating entry to the Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness. A substantial seasonal waterfall appears across Oneonta Creek. You'll cross another slide gully, which may necessitate some care if it has been recently active. The trail climbs to a pair of switchbacks as it traverses high above the amphitheater of Oneonta Falls, also known as Upper Oneonta Falls. You can see the very top of these falls from the trail. (A short, sometim

Trail Stats

Photos

400px-TripleFallsMap

400px-TripleFallsMap

250px-Lip_of_Triple_Falls%2C_Oneonta_Trail

250px-Lip_of_Triple_Falls%2C_Oneonta_Trail

250px-OneontaMiddle

250px-OneontaMiddle

250px-View_to_Archer_Mountain%2C_Oneonta_Trail

250px-View_to_Archer_Mountain%2C_Oneonta_Trail

250px-Cascade_penstemon_%28Penstemon_serrulatus%29%2C_Gorge_Trail

250px-Cascade_penstemon_%28Penstemon_serrulatus%29%2C_Gorge_Trail

400px-OneontaTriple

400px-OneontaTriple

TKO put tools to trail here.png

TKO put tools to trail here.png

Tags