Gill Creek Falls

From the town of Merritt, located 5 1/4 miles west of the junction of Highways 2 and 207 (Lake Wenatchee Road) at Coles Corner, follow the signs to the Lake Ethel Trailhead. The trailhead is about 1.3 miles up a rough, bumpy road not recommended for low clearance vehicles (though it is passable for the cautious). The trail climbs steeply to the top of the falls in just under a mile.Gill Creek Falls is one of the few substantial accessible waterfalls in the Nason Creek valley on the east side of Stevens Pass. The falls cascade over a 15 foot root-choked fall before veiling over what looks like a rather scenic 50 foot fall, then twists down a narrower gorge into a dark forest ravine. I say it looks scenic because the only way to easily see the falls is from the top. The Lake Ethel trail passes near the top of the falls and offers views over its crest, but accessing the base would require either a prohibitively dangerous scramble down the hillside, or a steep climb up from the abandoned road below. I do not recommend either option until the area can be properly scouted for a good route to the bottom. The falls are apparently a popular destination for ice climbers in the winter.