Cayuse Pass Falls

Cayuse Pass Falls is located near Cayuse Pass on the east side of Mount Rainier National Park. From the junction of Highways 410 and 123 at Cayuse Pass, follow Highway 123 south for just a half of a mile and park at the large gravel turnout on the right (west) side of the road. Walk south along the highway for about 270 feet and locate where the East Side Trail intersects the highway just before the road crosses a significant gully (the small metal sign indicating the trail is set several dozen yards back from the highway so it's not terribly obvious). Follow the trail downstream for just over one-third of a mile to where the falls are visible through the trees from the trail (a short distance past where the smaller unnamed waterfall is seen). A clear view of the falls requires finding a window between branches, or scrambling down the steep bank to the creek below.As Chinook Creek cascades down from its source in Tipsoo Lake, it drops over many waterfalls, each of which get progressively taller and more significant than the last. The second falls down from the pass is a remarkably easy to see stair-step cascade of 39 feet, falling with individual drops of 12, 16 and 11 feet respectively. That the falls are so easily visible from the Eastside Trail where it passes, yet virtually unknown speaks to the number of hikers who frequent this section of the trail. Flowing on a parallel course to Chinook Creek where this waterfall is found is an unnamed tributary which drains from the small meadows at the summit of Cayuse Pass just a bit to the northwest. This unnamed stream produces a scenic but not terribly noteworthy cascading fall of its own, which drops maybe 15 feet adjacent to the trail shortly before the main falls are encountered. At this point along its course, Chinook Creek is sustained entirely by snow melt from the Chinook and Cayuse Pass areas. Though the creek technically heads in Tipsoo Lake, the lake is not large enough to ensure a stained flow throughout the summer and the outlet will sometimes dry out as the water level drops. This means that Chinook Creek itself behaves almost as a seasonal stream at this point - though it rarely seems to actually go dry. In following, Cayuse Pass Falls is not terribly noteworthy a waterfall beyond the beginning of August, but because it's relatively easy to access it may still be worth investigating if one can confirm an adequate flow is present in the creek where it crosses Highway 123.