Tato Falls

Tato Falls is a modest waterfall dropping into the Nisqually River just above the bridge along Highway 706 that many people see but few people recognize as substantial - and it thats not an entirely unjustified sentiment. Tato Falls drops about 60 feet over a cliff line which marked the one time terminus of the Nisqually Glacier before the crystal clear water of its unnamed feeder stream mingles with the muddy churn of the river. Tato Falls can be seen from the east end of the bridge spanning the Nisqually River, but only part of the falls can be seen thanks to the shape of the recess it occupies. Before the high steel bridge crossing the Nisqually was constructed, the original Paradise Road crossed much further upstream, and passed very near the base of the falls before the road crossed the valley at river level. When the road was realigned, the falls became sort of 'lost' in the scenery.Tato Falls were named by former Park superintendent Ethan Allen for his daughter Rachel Ann Allen, whose nickname was "Tato". The date the name was implemented is not known. Discovery of the falls is thought to be quite early in the history of the Park as the falls formerly were a minor attraction along the original Paradise Road as it crossed beneath the toe of the Nisqually Glacier.