A Perfect Day in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest
The golden maples were stunning as we drove the winding road on the way to our destination. Even if the view we were hoping to see was blocked by clouds when we arrived this drive alone was making the trip well worth it.
Scott and I were traveling on Forest Road 23 on our way to Takhlakh Lake, and maybe a little side trip to Twin Falls. I couldn’t wait to see these places with fall color after visiting them earlier in the summer. We had a full day planned for what looked like could be the last sunny day of the fall.
We left home early to make the most of our day. We hadn’t thought about catching the sunrise, but by the time we reached Tanwax Chapel on Hwy 7, the sky was starting to light up. We stayed to enjoy the view with a couple of other photographers before continuing on our journey. Not a bad way to start.
It was still early when we arrived at Takhlakh Lake and – as usual – the views were amazing. There was golden yellow and fiery red foliage contrasting with the blue sky and snowcapped Mount Adams. We snapped a few pics, but knowing the light would be better later for pictures, we continued on to Twin Falls.
Scott and I had the gorgeous views of Twin Falls completely to ourselves. It had golden maples mixed in with the surrounding green like I had hoped. It was beautiful! We took our time taking the pictures we wanted, and then stayed to relax and enjoy. This Gifford Pinchot National Forest waterfall is really a hidden gem. Not very many people seem to know about it.
Eventually we got hungry and made use of the picnic tables, bringing out our camp stove to heat up our lunch. It was nice having something hot to eat after sitting in the cool outdoors.
As we were preparing to move on to the next thing, Scott saw on his map that we were very close to Lewis River Falls. The timing would be tight since we still hoped to get back to Takhlakh Lake with good light. But I’ve always wanted to visit Lewis Falls in the fall, so of course we had to go.
We skipped the upper and middle falls due to time constraints and went straight to the lower falls. They were stunning. Very different from when I had last seen them in the springtime. And the fall foliage framed them up nicely.
One last stop to our day and that was back at Takhlakh Lake. When we arrived, the sun was showing off Mount Adams to perfection. There was a little bit of wind so the reflection in the lake would show up only briefly before it disappeared. I had to be very patient to catch it in my photos, but it was worth the wait.
We had just a little daylight left to enjoy the beautiful drive home. FSR 23 and Highway 7 were both beautiful in their color. It was a beautiful day, and just what I needed.
On to the next adventure!