All Viewable in a Single Day!
Tillamook State Forest is in the Coast Range between the Willamette Valley and the town of Tillamook on the Oregon coast. This area was devastated by four of the worst forest fires in Oregon history which occurred at six year intervals in 1933, 1939, 1945 and 1951.
These wildfires decimated 350,000 acres of old growth forest. In 1948, Oregonians authorized the purchase of $12 million in bonds to rehabilitate the forest. To start the regeneration process, 72 million seedlings were planted, and then nature took its course. In 1973, Governor Tom McCall officially renamed the area of the “Tillamook Burn” as the Tillamook State Forest. (Public Domain Photo courtesy of the Oregon Archives)
OR-6 runs east-west across the forest along the Wilson River and is often referred to as the Wilson River Highway. We are going to visit four waterfalls that can be accessed from the Wilson River Highway, three that are right along the road and one that can be reached by a short hike. We will visit them going from east to west on OR-6.
Fern Rock Creek Falls is 13 miles west of the junction of OR-8 and OR-6. Fern Rock Creek drops a total of 35 feet in four tiers with the longest vertical drop being 20′. It is an example of a horsetail tier waterfall. Although this waterfall is literally right along the highway, it is not the easiest of the group to find. There is a large dirt turnout on the south side of the road at the waterfall. There is supposed to be a sign that just says “Falls” on the north side of the road, but I never saw that sign.
University Falls is reached by hiking 1.2 miles roundtrip on an out-and-back trail which descends 144 feet in elevation through the forest. While hiking, you will notice that there are no old growth trees and see the presence of a large number of deciduous trees. This provides a good example of the process of regeneration of the burned forest. After 0.6 miles, Elliott Creek falls in a veil over a jagged basalt wall into a small bowl surrounded by red alders. University Falls is an example of a curtain horsetail waterfall. To reach the falls from the Wilson River Highway, turn onto University Falls Road and follow the University Falls signs to the trailhead which is about 3.5 miles from the highway. Part of the route is on dirt roadway.
The last two waterfalls are accessed from the same parking area along the Wilson River, the Footbridge Picnic Area. This area also gives easy access for walking along the bank of the river. If you are lucky, you might see kayakers navigating the rapids and eddies.
Bridge Creek Falls is reached from the parking area by walking up to the highway and crossing it. The short 0.1 mile walkway takes you to the falls. Here, Bridge Creek drops 50′ in three tiers and is a tiered horsetail waterfall. Downstream of the falls, Bridge Creek’s natural course runs across the highway so it has been diverted under the road via a culvert.
Lower Bridge Creek Falls drops 30′ out of the culvert into the Wilson River. It is considered a waterfall because, before diversion under the surface of the road, it was a natural waterfall. I was surprised at the beauty of this particular waterfall since research I did before my trip described it as unattractive!
There are more waterfalls in the Tillamook State Forest just waiting for me to explore on another day!