Hopkins Creek Falls

While the lower falls of Hopkins Creek grabs all the attention due to its ease of access, hidden just a quarter mile upstream is a booming juggernaut of a waterfall. The falls consist of three primary drops; first a spectacular 193-foot horsetailing fall which sprays into a shear-walled grotto, followed by back-to-back drops of 56 and 36 feet in a more heavily forested part of the canyon. The two lower tiers can be seen collectively from below, but only through-the-tree slivers of the large upper tier can be seen from the same viewpoint due to the way the stream flows around a small promontory in the canyon on which grow several large trees. Topographic data suggests there is a 60-foot tall cascading fourth tier to the falls located about 100 feet upstream from the top of the 193-footer, however climbing to that point appears to be considerably more difficult and involved (if at all possible). Though the base of this waterfall terminates just a few hundred feet from the top of Lower Hopkins Creek Falls, it could easily be argued that the whole series of falls on Hopkins Creek should be considered one set of waterfalls - if that were the case its height would total over 440 feet and make it one of the tallest waterfalls in southern Washington. However, because the lower falls cannot be seen together with the three tiers which make up this waterfall, we opted to split the entries in two. Because Hopkins Creek is largely affected by seasonal precipitation, the quality of this waterfall will certainly decrease as the year progresses. By mid summer expect just a small amount of water - a trickle even - to be present, which will greatly reduce the visual impact to the point where it may not be worth the effort required to visit. Though all maps we've seen seem to indicate the falls do (just barely) occur on National Forest land, there are several private homes immediately nearby which cast doubt to the access situation. Every visit we've made to Hopkins Creek there has been no indication that the area is not accessible to the public, but if such signage does pop up, please be respectful of the rights of the adjacent property owners and do no trespass if the trail is so marked. One of the adjacent homeowners does appear to have rigged a small water catchment system downstream of Lower Hopkins Creek Falls, so please leave the system alone - vandalism to private property like this is often what gets waterfalls such as these closed off to public access.This waterfall is not known to have ever had an official or colloquial name. All editions of Greg Plumb's Waterfall Lover's Guide books refer to the lowermost falls on Hopkins Creek as Hopkins Creek Falls, however given that this is clearly the major waterfall of the creek, it was necessary to adjust the naming convention appropriately.