Twin Falls Hike Makes for a Quick Escape into Misty Magnificence

Goal: Wash away your worries with a quick and easy escape to magical, mossy cathedral forests and a thundering gorge with multiple misty plunges on the South Fork Snoqualmie River. The Twin Falls reach of Olallie State Park is one of the finest year-round family hikes along the entire Mountains-to-Sounds Greenway—and as such as it is exceedingly popular. Do not expect to be alone here any weekend of the year. For a more contemplative approach, hike this on a weekday morning.

Logistics, statistics: It's only 1.25 miles from the parking area to a foot bridge across the river at the upper falls, with an elevation gain of 500 feet, which is why this is a fine family hike. The 2.5-mile round trip is practical for most kids who have outgrown the baby backpack. But get there early on a weekend because the parking lot will fill up by 9 or 10 a.m. Spring is the best season, since the river is swollen with snowmelt from the Cascade Mountains just east, and the falls are at their swirling, misty, mesmerizing best.

Dogs are allowed, but only on leash. Caution is advised, particularly with children, since there are precipitous spots along the route where a tumble would be fatal. You won't need a map for this short out-and-back if you stay on the trail. But there is one attached here as a PDF file. As always, pack out what you bring; never leave litter and please scoop after your dog.

Find the trailhead near North Bend by taking Exit 34, 468th Avenue, off of Interstate 90. Follow 468th south a half-mile, taking a left on Southeast 159th and following it to its end in another half-mile.

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SHARP-EYED READERS will note the name of this column, “Outside in Town,” and the fact that this hike is not in Kirkland at all. Well, sometimes you’ve got to get away; in summer, the alpine meadows, lakes and peaks beckon. And each spring, we hear the crashing call of rivers and waterfalls, frothy and full of melting snow, urgent and insistent, returning the earth’s lifeblood back to the sea.

The Twins Falls Trail in Olallie State Park is a classic local family hike, not in Kirkland but not far away at all.

“Right now is a great time to go, when the river is flowing so high,” says Rick Oakley, the Olallie State Park ranger. “In summer, it’s just a trickle.”

According to Bryan Swan's Waterfalls Northwest website, Twin Falls is misnamed. The South Fork of the Snoqualmie River here funnels through a narrow gorge, actually making a series of drops with three primary sections. The biggest plunge—an impressive 135 feet—is at the lowest point, and can be seen at a bit of a distance from a wooden overlook along the trail.

The trail begins at a signpost at the east side of the parking area, quickly dropping gently to the bank of the river. The river corridor is exceedingly damp most of the year because of the heavy rainfall here, where clouds from the Pacific pile up against the west flanks of the Cascade Range -- not to mention the mists that float gently from the river.

So it feels like the rainforest of the Olympic Peninsula, with moss-draped green gardens of vine maple twisting above and giant sword ferns growing along the path. You even see towering Sitka spruce, a conifer far more common along coastal rivers, in this impressive mix of mature and second-growth forest.

For almost a mile the trail follows the river, gentle and pretty, with plenty of picnicking and toe-dipping spots along the banks. Then it begins to climb, passing stands of truly massive, gnarly-barked Douglas fir and spruce.

After a few switchbacks—along which your tiny ones will be reaching for your arms—you’ll find a cool wooden stairway to the lower overlook above the river and a great view upstream of the largest falls. When we were there recently after heavy rain and climbing freezing levels, the river was so full and mists wafting off the falls were so intense that the view was largely obscured. We were wearing full raingear, and without it we would have been soaked to the bone in minutes.

BACK ON THE TRAIL, climb a few more switchbacks and you come to the footbridge directly above the gorge and the churning river, with great views upstream and downstream, set in splendid forest of huge, mature fir, cedar and hemlock.

Drink it in, feel the thunder at your feet, listen to the river music—pretty impressive! This is what draws the crowds.

“We see a lot of families and novice hikers,” says ranger Oakley. “They’re looking for something not too challenging but with a great reward at the end.”

Arrive early on weekends if you want to find a decent parking spot, rain or shine.

“On sunny days, cars will park all the way down the entrance road, easily half a mile,” says Oakley. “We definitely have issues with parking capacity.”

The ranger asks that you do not block any of the residents' driveways, and respect their right to privacy.

Climb one more switchback to a view of the uppermost falls—not as impressive but again, pretty cool. At this point you’ve gained 500 feet of elevation, and gotten a bit of exercise anyway.

If you continue climbing the trail from here, you’ll soon reach the Iron Horse Trail, on the former bed of the Milwaukee Railroad—but that’s another story.

So turn around, make your leisurely way back to the trailhead, your soul refreshed.

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