Lila Falls

Take Interstate 90 to the Lake Kachess / Stampede Pass exit, about 10 1/2 miles east of Snoqualmie Pass or 8 1/2 miles west of Easton, and turn north toward Lake Kachess. After 5 1/4 miles the pavement ends and the road makes a sharp bend to the left (Kachess Campground is to the right) and becomes FSR-4930. Follow the often rough (potholes and washboard) gravel road uphill for about one-third of a mile, then bear right at the fork and continue to the Rachel Lake Trailhead about four miles from the end of the pavement. Set out on the Rachel Lake Trail, which begins by climbing moderately and then levels off to a gradual pace. At the 2 3/4 mile mark the trail crosses an unnamed branch of Box Canyon Creek without a bridge, which may be as much as knee deep if there are no logs. The trail becomes considerably steeper at this point, climbing past several waterfalls (see the links below). At about 3.4 miles the trail crosses the outlet of Lila Lake between the two most visible tiers of Lila Falls. To view the lower tier, cross the creek and continue about 100 feet past the stream, then bail off the left side of the trail down the steep slope to the base of the falls below - this is not terribly difficult, but it is fairly steep, but as long as you stay back from the creek it isn't terribly dangerous.Rachel Lake is the largest water body on the fantastic alpine environs of Rampart Ridge to the east of Snoqualmie Pass. The lake itself is a fairly popular dayhiking destination, even though the trail isn't quite up to the standards of many other hikes in the Interstate 90 corridor. What most don't realize about the Rachel Lake Trail is there are at least a half-dozen major waterfalls which can be found along the headwall below Rachel Lake as the various forks of Box Canyon Creek cascade down into the valley from the ridgeline.
As the Rachel Lake Trail climbs the headwall, it actually follows the stream which originates in nearby Lila Lake more frequently than it follows the outlet of Rachel Lake. A little more than halfway up the headwall, the trail crosses this stream (without a bridge) between tiers of Lila Falls, made up of a very eye-catching 98-foot tall veiling fall right above the trail, and a much narrower 69-foot tall horsetail directly below the trail. Immediately upstream from the fall which can be seen from the trail there is almost certainly (at least) another 100 feet of falls, but the terrain and surrounding brush makes it extremely hazardous to attempt to get closer to whatever upper bits of falls there may be, so we can't confirm for sure exactly what is up there or how tall it is, but the GPS track we recorded suggests the total height may be close to 300 feet. The Rachel Lake Trail does climb essentially all the way to the top of the falls however, and one is afforded a not-very-revealing view down the cliff where the falls occur.
Like nearby Rachel Lake Falls, the outlet from Lila Lake is highly dependant on snow melt and precipitation in order to retain a strong flow. After the snow pack has melted for the season, the volume of water present in the creek is reduced considerably, but the stream does not run dry. The basin feeding this stream is actually considerably larger than the Rachel Lake outlet, and the falls will run stronger for a longer period, but it will be reduced greatly by the autumn months.