Hike #1 - Silver Creek Falls

Silver Falls State Park

If it's waterfalls you're after—especially the chance to get behind them—this is the hike of your dreams. It's an easy loop that's known as Trail of Ten Falls. There are also shorter loops available, all of which take in views of one or more waterfalls.

This is the crown jewel of the Oregon State Parks system; it's also one of the most visited parks in the state and Oregon's largest state park. Unless it's a rainy weekday in the winter, you probably won't be close to alone here, but it hardly matters. It's one of the finest hikes around, especially if you're into waterfalls. By the way, Silver Creek was named not for its color but for a pioneer who settled here in the 1840s.

This gorgeous hike weaves through Silver Creek Canyon past many spectacular waterfalls in the park. The trail starts next to South Falls Lodge and descends steeply into the canyon. It was a beautiful sunny day in the valley so Rod, Carley, and I decided that we were going to make the 4.2 mile loop, saving the North Falls for another day. After we found the trailhead, the hike started out like any other normal hike. We did not get too far when we encountered a family that inquired if we were headed down to the falls and informed us that the trail was steep and slick so we opted to go in the other direction as far as we could before we would have to turn back as part of the trail was closed. The first part of the trail was great, no issues, but as we hiked further in we again encountered more hikers warning us of steep, slick spots throughout the trail. Since we were already there, we decided to go further into the park. After about 1 mile in, I took a little tumble down the trail so we decided to turn around and head back. Unfortunately, our hike was cut short, the only falls we saw where the South Falls at the beginning of the hike, but we will definitely go back and try this hike again. To be continued....