Mashel Falls in the Spring
We first visited this trio of waterfalls during the pandemic when we had a sever case of cabin fever and desperately needed to get out of the house. We don’t usually think about hiking this early in the year due to rain and often muddy trails, but our need to get out outweighed any of these concerns. So off we went.
We drove to the trailhead; located near Eatonville on Highway 7; and parked. Because of the pandemic, ours was the only car there. Not many were venturing out yet. Now a days you can expect to see several people on the hike.
Most of the trail was very wide and flat. More of a dirt road than a trail. Near the end, the trail leaves the road and becomes more like a normal hiking trail. Narrower and a little muddy in some places, and heads downhill.
We weren’t sure what we would see.
The hike was supposed to be around 5 miles, and feature 3 or 4 waterfalls, but we weren’t sure exactly where they were. We decided to explore the trails to see what we’d find.
I
t turns out there’s an upper, middle and lower falls. Each one different. Each one beautiful.
We started at the upper falls. Upper Falls is a two-tier waterfall, each with a short drop collecting in a pool. The water then spills out of the pool directly into the next waterfall. It was a great place to stop for a snack before we continued exploring.
Middle Falls has the most impressive drop. There was also an impressive amount of water spilling over the edge. There was a large area at the base of the falls where we could explore the waterfall from many different angles and sides. We enjoyed going right up to the falls seeing the area behind it and going downstream a bit to view it from farther away.
The Lower Falls were next. The water flowed in several paths down the moss-covered rocks creating a gorgeous display. The pool at the bottom would be great for getting wet – in the summer. This time I let my tripod stand in the water for me in my attempt to get a nice shot of the waterfall.
It turns out March and April are great times to view waterfalls.
On to the next adventure.