A sunny weekend in the forecast on the other side of the mountain – packed up Friday afternoon in the rain and we drove until we hit sunshine in Maupin, Oregon! We arrived on opening weekend – apparently a day early as power and water hadn’t been turned on yet. The forest supervisor was kind enough to allow us to stay, and we had the entire campground to ourselves both days. This is quite a remote area, but it’s a short drive to the Columbia River Gorge where we hiked around and did a little exploring.
Had the entire place to ourselves for the weekend!
Our destination this weekend was White River Falls State Park. We attempted to visit last year during our VERY hot summer, but when we arrived, the water was running really low and with temps in the 100s we decided to save it for another time. This weekend the temps hit 70 – which in my opinion is PERFECT hiking weather!
Early spring and everything is newly blooming! Love this time of year!
This little park, according to the Oregon parks website, is “One of Oregon’s secret hideaways. It is located just east of Tygh Valley along Highway 216. The White River plunges 90′ over a basalt shelf. The park offers excellent viewpoints of the White River falls. A rugged quarter-mile trail takes hikers down deep within the canyon to the historic hydroelectric power plant at the base of the raw, churning power of the falls. The power plant supplied electricity to Wasco and Sherman Counties from 1910 until the completion of The Dalles Dam in 1960.
The old power plant is still accessible and is fun to explore. There were lots of families making their way down on this weekend. It’s a fun hike for kids as there’s a lot to see!
Heading down the trail you walk past several little waterfalls
First view of the old power plant in the canyon
Checking out the inside
Popular swimming hole in the summer.
You can walk quite away down the canyon
Great spot for lunch!
The (not so) Small Small Trailer 