Watson Falls, Oregon

The North Umpqua River facilitates several of Oregon's finest waterfalls. 

Toketee Falls, in particular, is one of the more famous waterfalls in the Northwest. So you can imagine my disappointment when we arrived at the trailhead to find the access trail completely inaccessible due to thick ice. But not to be turned back, we crossed Oregon Highway 138 and found the access trail for Watson Falls. 

Unlike the popular Toketee, Watson Falls is one of the highest waterfalls in Oregon (Did you know that Oregon means falling water?). The trail up to the Watson Falls view point had almost no ice on it due to direct sunlight and a south-facing orientation. This allowed us to scramble off the trail to get up close to the base of the falls. 

This quickly became an incredibly unique experience.  A late remnant of snow had frozen around the base of the falls, forming a giant cone of snow and ice. The falls had broken through the cone, but then continued to flow underneath the snow. Epic. 

Normally, I would recommend this trip for the late spring season. But after today, I would say that winter is wonderful.  

Bonus points: couple this trip with toketee falls and be sure to pack crampons and self-arrest tools to climb down the ice.