French Basin Falls 4

Located north of Detroit Lake near the Santiam Highway. From I-5 in Salem, follow Highway 22 east for about 49 miles to French Creek Road - just west of the bridge over the Breitenbush River on the west side of the town of Detroit - and turn left. Proceed for just over 4 miles, and keep left on FR # 2225. Proceed for another 1.2 miles to where the falls can be seen across the valley from a turnout where the road bends to the right. Approaching the bottom of the falls from downstream is likely possible, but not recommended (it looks especially brushy).This is the largest of the 6 plus waterfalls in the upper basin of French Creek that can be readily seen with ease. The falls plunge through a narrow wooded gap and spray about 130 feet down a basalt cliff to a large talus pile. A series of high-tension towers string power lines above the falls, though fortunately far enough above that it isn't a detractor for photographs. Because of the small size of the drainage area above the falls, I suspect the falls likely run close to dry late in the year, but I would be surprised if it dries out completely. I suspect that during low-flows, it wouldn't be worth taking pictures of this waterfall, however.