Washington State Parks: Palouse Falls

Palouse Falls is so well-loved by Washingtonians that it is our official state waterfall. It is also well-loved by photographers. And it's not hard to see why.

There is drama in the landscape here. The walls of the canyon, carved from the land by the Missoula Floods expose rugged columnar basalt. The Palouse River winds through the canyon first dropping over the upper falls, a plummet of about 20 feet. It looks to be almost a set of rapids in comparison to the 198 foot drop of the park's main attraction, lower falls. It then meanders through curved canyons until it reaches its confluence with the Snake River.

Most people and almost all photographers come for the views of the lower falls as it plunges into a deep bowl. From the view points along the short rim trail, you can photograph the gentle rolling Palouse hill landscape in contrast with the rugged canyons. Even a snapshot gathers applause.

A wide angle lens is used for the sweeping vistas one can get from the view points. These images show the contrast between the surrounding hills and the deep canyons, hidden from view until you reach the rim.

But don't put your telephoto lens away. Details of the canyon such as the castle rocks that stand guard at the edge of lower falls can be isolated from the scene. And there's a lot of beauty in the details of Palouse Falls.

Late afternoon can bring a special show to the falls. Stand at the far north end of the rim trail, where the rim is blocked and you can see a rainbow near the base of the falls. You may not want to move as it shimmers in the spray of the falls.

As with most waterfalls, seasonal changes can be quite dramatic. Winter and spring rains can have the waterfall gushing over the edge and summer's droughts can reduce the falls to a trickle. The meadows of the park can also have varying changes for the seasons with flowers blooming in the spring and summer and dried grasses in the autumn.

There is a darker side to Palouse Falls State Park, a sad story of the misuse by the people who love it so. This past October, park staff erected a fence blocking entry to the north end of the park and with it blocking access to the upper falls and some of the more iconic views of the falls.

Why? Because visitors couldn't respect the park or the land.

Social trails criss-cross the north end of the park and once visitors got to the view of upper falls, they'd climb down the basalt walls to the canyon floor, sometimes getting stuck and needing rescue. Vandalism was also occurring regularly to park machinery in the area. Park staff decided the best way to protect the park and the visitors was to close off that section of the park.

The only authorized trail in the park is the rim trail. All other trails including the one to the base of lower falls are social trails. Please be careful if you decide to hike this trail as it is not maintained as it is not an authorized trail. Maybe with more funding and staffing it could be safer to hike, but if that trail is also misused staff may need to close off that section of the park too.

Palouse Falls State Park is a camping park but for tents only. All campsites are walk-in campsites. There are train tracks that go through a small canyon just west of the entrance and yes, trains travel through there during the night. So if you do camp out, take ear plugs.

Getting there: From highway 26 in Eastern Washington, head south on highway 260/261. Drive 6.5 miles and turn left staying on highway 261 (highway 260 continues straight). Continue on highway 261 for 8.5 miles to Palouse Falls Rd and follow the step road to the park.

One Last Waterfall

Palouse Falls, 3/26/08

It was cold this morning as Olympia & I drove out the old dirt road, winding our way between the ranches on our way to that perfect view of the Wallowas. I had spotted the view the day before as I was about to round the bend and drop back down in the valley. "This is it!" I said to Olympia ass the mountains came into full view. "This is where I want to watch the sunrise." And the reward was spectacular, the pinks lit up the snow still clinging to the slopes and sparkled on the clouds overhead. Then all too soon it was gone.

After exploring the surrounding area a bit, we packed up to head northward towards Walla Walla and Palouse Falls. I stopped in the town of Wallowa for a mocha breve made by a friend at the Blonde Strawberry Coffeeshop - worth the stop anytime of the year.


We reached Palouse Falls in the afternoon after driving through fields showing the first signs of spring and others still sleeping under the spell of winter. I had never seen Palouse Falls and was amazed at the size of this cascade in the heart of sagebrush country. But the view was magnificent as I stood high on the cliff overlooking the gorge that had taken centuries to carve through the volcanic rock.


At our feet stood the most raggedy yellow-bellied marmot I had ever seen, but also the bravest. His home was in the cracks and crevices over-looking the gorge. Just watching him jump around on the rocks made my stomach lurch. After a quiet and cold evening at the falls, Olympia made our way home to spend the rest of the week in relative warmth at home.