Snag Canyon Falls

The best views of Snag Canyon Falls are had from the parking area at Peaches and Creme Falls (see link below for directions). There are no views of the falls from the Elaho Main as it gets closer to the stream which descends down Snag Canyon.Snag Canyon Falls is a tantalizingly large waterfall situated high up on the side of the Elaho River valley which, unfortunately, simply cannot be reached easily. The falls occur along an unnamed stream flowing out of one of three major lakes on the Blanca Lake plateau, which drains down through Snag Canyon - presumably named such for the numerous dead snags around the top of the falls. Furthering the character of the area, the stream enters the canyon from the side rather than from its head and plunges off a lip to impact on a steeply inclined wall of bedrock down which it slides for the majority of its descent. The falls were formerly somewhat tricky to get a good view of, however following recent forest fires in the Elaho River valley, the views have opened up and the falls are highly visible from across the valley in many areas now. While there are abandoned logging roads in the vicinity of the falls, there is no easy way to closely approach this waterfall, which would likely be quite a spectacle from up close, without expending a great amount of time and energy smashing through the brushy canyon. Instead one must be satisfied with views across the valley, which can be fleetingly sparse with the commonly moist weather and regularly low cloud deck the area experiences. The stream that Snag Canyon Falls occurs along drains from a fairly small basin, covering an area of approximately 3.8 square kilometers (about 2.3 square miles), almost all of which is situated over 1500 meters above sea level. The high elevation and very wet climate of this part of British Columbia ensures that a heavy winter snow pack will typically fall in its basin, resulting in strong spring and early summer flows. However once the seasonal snow has melted off, the one modest lake in the basin will not provide much sustenance to the stream and its volume should be expected to be greatly reduced in following - possibly to the point of running dry in the late summer and early autumn months during years with low winter snow pack or lengthy periods of summer drought.