About Upper McCord Creek Falls
The Upper McCord Creek Falls (also called just Upper McCord Falls) was an attractive double-barreled waterfall said to have a height of about 64ft. As you can see from the photo at the top of this page, I happened to see this falls in a bit of a low flow state because it lacked that twin characteristic as the left segment of the falls only showed a wet stain on its underlying wall. I’d imagine that this reduced flow would be typical towards the late Summer, which was the case when I made my visit on August 2017. Nevertheless, while this falls lacked the dramatic plunge of its downstream neighbor in Elowah Falls, the hike leading up to it featured dramatic scenery, an opportunity to look down at the Elowah Falls, and have a bit more of an intimate experience with this understated waterfall as it was less popular given the amount of effort to reach it. But rather than giving in to comparing the two waterfalls, I found it worthwhile to combine them in a single hike to get the full experience.
The hike shared the same trailhead as that of Elowah Falls so it was also within the boundaries of the John B Yeon State Park. For the first 0.4 miles, the trail ascended above the trailhead parking area and reached the trailhead junction. At this junction, I went right, and from this point forward, the hike deviated from the Elowah Falls experience. After continuing its gradual climb as the trail went further to the west, it eventually switched back as it turned out to be the first in a series of switchbacks ascending far higher than the Elowah Falls Trail did. Along the way, I noticed some corroded pipes criss-crossing the switchbacks in a couple of spots, where I had to climb over them while being careful not to succumb to the dropoffs.
These pipes turned out to be penstocks that used to divert water from McCord Creek towards a pulp mill belonging to settler Myron Kelly in the late 1800s. Eventually, after the switchbacks (ultimately gaining about 400ft), the trail then skirted a basalt cliff ledge, which was said to be where Kelly utilized this break in the hard rock layers to move the water from McCord Creek to the pipes that I had to cross over a couple of times. By the way, if you want to read more about the fascinating history of this area, I’ve provided a link to an excellent source here. With railings to held mentally assure me that I wouldn’t go off the dropoffs to my left, this dramatic part of the trail was the first main payoff of this hike as it afforded me gorgeous views across the Columbia River towards Mt Adams as well as a hint of Cascade Locks in the distance. The ledged part of the trail would continue to round a bend as it skirted the gorge carved out by the McCord Creek.
At about a half-mile from the trail junction, I started to catch a fleeting glimpse over the top of Elowah Falls down below. Some of the railings here were actually loose or had fallen off already so I had to be careful not to get too close to the cliff edges to get a cleaner look at the falls (the overgrowth in the foreground conspired to obscure the views). The trail would continue its meander along the ledges (with one section having an overhang above me) for the remaining 0.2 miles before the trail re-entered a forested area. Shortly thereafter, I approached the Upper McCord Creek Falls where there was a lookout providing the view you see pictured at the top of this page. The trail actually kept going towards the top of the waterfall, but I was content to turn back at the viewpoint, looking forward to taking advantage of my momentum on the all downhill return hike.
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