Cedar Falls-Hamilton Creek

7 miles of hiking • 1500' elevation gain •

I had a rough plan to spend my rainy days this winter exploring the area between the Columbia and Sunset-Hemlock rd, and bounded generally by Hamilton Mtn and Bonneville dam. I figured I'd follow the snow line throughout the winter as the mountains filled up and TH access became limited. Obviously this didn't happen and I didn't spend much time in this area as a result. Today, though, I set out on a rainy afternoon to visit Cedar Falls and check out the old RR grade along Hamilton Creek. I only had a few hours which didn't take me too far but it was a nice trip with many future possibilities. The trail to the falls is in great shape with evidence of very recent maintenance work. There were even a couple trilliums blooming along with pink salmonberry flowers here and there. Elk have been hitting the area pretty hard it appears and I had to laugh when I got to the roped up area. The elk had trampled the rope into the dirt as they dove down and across the gully with apparent ease.