Eagle Creek Trailhead — Attraction in Hood River

I had heard the Eagle Creek trail was one of the most spectacular hikes in the Columbia River Gorge and a great hike for seeing waterfalls. Well, that was no lie. The Eagle Creek trail is amazing. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the more popular hikes in the Columbia River Gorge. Our goal was to hike to Tunnel Falls which is about 12 miles out-and-back. We went on a weekday hoping to avoid the crowds. We arrived at the trailhead around 9:30 am and were happy to see the parking lot wasn’t too crowded. Overall, the trail was moderately difficult but mostly level with a few rocky areas. I was a little worried about how our dog would do on a 12-mile hike, but other than making sure he had enough water, was on a leash and stayed on the trail, there were no problems. Large sections of the trail are very narrow and literally carved into the basalt cliff with cable hand grips fastened to the cliff to help hikers stay on the trail. I had heard numerous reports of people or dogs falling off the trail and now I see how easy that would be. At 1.5 miles we saw Metlako Falls on the opposite side of Eagle Creek and at 2 miles, we came to Punch Bowl Falls which was accessible from a side trail. Punch Bowl Falls is beautiful and very photogenic but can be a challenge to get a photo without people in it. Luckily that wasn’t a problem this time. At 3.3 miles up the trail we came to High Bridge which crossed over the narrow gorge about 150 feet above Eagle Creek and offered a stunning view of the gorge and creek below. A little further up the trail we passed a sign that described a fire that swept through the area in 1902. According to Wikipedia, it’s thought the fire was started by some boys trying to burn a nest of hornets. The fire spread and eventually became a part of a fire complex named the Yacolt Burn which burned about 239,000 acres and caused at least 65 deaths. At 5 miles we came to a sign saying we were about to enter the Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness in the Mount Hood National Forest and we needed to obtain a permit before entering the wilderness. We continued for about 2 miles and reached Tunnel Falls at around 2 pm which meant it took us about 4 hours to reach the falls. At a height of 172 feet, Tunnel Falls was spectacular. The trail was very narrow with a man-made tunnel that was blasted through the cliff behind the waterfall. There were quite a few people around the falls which made it difficult to pass on the narrow trail. We hung out for about a half hour taking pictures and enjoying the mist coming off the falls. I later found out there was another waterfall not too far up the trail called Twister Falls that I wish we had seen. But I guess that leaves something for...

The Eagle Creek is CLOSED till further notice since October 23, 2021. I was on the hike one day before the hike closed. The reason for the closure is due to the latest hikers starting that they saw many rocks, boulders, and trees falling from cliffs and overhangs along the first half of the Eagle Creek Trail. The day that I was there, it was rainy, but butifule. I only got to Punchbowl Falls due to the sun starting to set and saw a few rocks falling right into the path in front of us. Also, there was trees clashing and tumbling down cliffs in the distance. The estimated time of the reopening of the Eagle Creek Trail is June 20th. The waterfall was flowing hard as we were scooping out the cliff jumps for the summer. The cliff jumps there are dangerous and the water is normally 45 degrees farenhight. There also are tons of freshly fallen rocks, boulders, and trees on the trail therefore making it very dangerous. Although the Eagle Creek Trail is Closed, you can still visit the Gorge Trail 400 that has a small bridge crossing along the road and goes along the Columbia River Gorge. At this time, there are many salmon to consider. Watching the salmon jump up the little waterfall in the open area of the trailhead was exillerating. Don't disturb the tons of salmon that are swimming in the Eagle creek due to the fragile habitat that they have. There are many projects that try to keep the salmon population to consider when you are watching the salmon and other fish swim.

Keep the cliffs Clean Project @DMP...

This was my first time hiking ever! Didn’t get thru the whole thing…maybe a mile or two more after the Punch Bowl. Honestly, it was a litttleeee tough for me - I’m a beginner, but when those rails they have on the narrow path…life saver!! I’m kind of scared of heights but not really. I guess some parts here and there were terrifying. Also had one bottle of water and casual Nikes (no cushion)…big mistake. Def going to buy some hiking boots in the future lol. My feet were killing me from those gravel rocks lol.

Overall, the views are crazy nice from what I got to see on this hike. If you’re scared of heights, this wasn’t too too bad but still kind of scary on the way up. But the way down was easier for some reason. I was winded lol. Shoutout to the lady for the electrolytes and trail mix 🤞🏾 you lifesaver !!!

Parking was easy for me. Got there around 12:00PM on a Monday. The lot by the trail was full, but I parked on the side of the mountain. Not too packed at all so that was great. I saw a few people bring their dogs. Those dogs are bold and or scared/tired lol. Tree logs in the way as and some slippery rocks (casual nikes - didn’t have hiking hoots my fault - city guy here lol).

Anyway, overall this hike was cool. I’d come back and try to finish if I could…us Houstonians are used to flat lands...