Lower Forest Glen Falls

Lower Forest Glen Falls is a low volume fall located along an unnamed stream which drains into the Cascade River between Sibley and Hard Creeks. The falls drop a total of 70 feet in two distinct sections; first a series of cascades which tumble about 20 feet over a bedrock ledge cluttered with fallen trees and several large rocks, and then in a second veiling horsetail-type fall which drops an additional 69 feet. Based on one-meter resolution LIDAR data, it appears likely this waterfall is not entirely natural. When the Cascade River Road was constructed, a substantial fill bank appears to have been built to cross the gully this stream naturally occupied, and the stream then funneled slightly south via a culvert to avoid eroding the fill material. This redirection has resulted in the stream plunging over the cliff which creates the falls, below which it rejoins the natural stream channel. The creek which produces this waterfall drains from a basin covering approximately 0.85 square miles in area on the west flank of Hidden Lakes Peaks, rising up to a maximum elevation of about 6500 feet above sea level. Flow is typically fueled by active snow melt, and once the seasonal snowpack has subsided the volume of the stream quickly reduces by a considerable amount. A small volume of water typically remains all year, but by the late summer months it may be no more than a trickle.