Nahatlatch and Grizzly Falls

 

We tried to visit Grizzly Falls a couple of years ago, but a sign along the way warned of a missing bridge down the road, so we abandoned that trip for the time being.
Having visited the Nahatlatch area a few times since then, we decided to try again on October 31st of this year...

This weekend's weather was glorious and will probably be the last decent weekend of this year, so we took advantage of it. The road along the Nahatlatch river was in fairly good shape.

We stopped at lakeside a few times to snap a photo or two...

Just as the road starts to climb, we are presented with an awesome viewpoint high above the lake.

Great views in both directions along the valley...

After the viewpoint, the road drops down to the valley floor again and the roadbed actually improves slightly, allowing us to gain a bit more speed than we did to this point.
After another 7 or 8 more miles, the road crosses the Nahatlatch river and then turns eastward. Shortly after that, we get our first peek at Grizzly Falls.

The flow is strong...but since it is the first time we've seen it, I can't say if it is a heavier flow than normal. There has been much rain lately, so that probably contributed to the amount of water we see coming down.

An awesome-looking waterfall from whatever angle you choose. It was cold at this end of the valley, so any spray on the bridge deck was turned to ice.

Another visitor to the area offered to take our picture as we stood in fron of the falls, to give it some perspective. We are still 50 yds or more from where the water hits the ground.

Since it was getting late and we didn't want to be travelling the Nahatlatch FSR in the dark, we decided to leave after 10 minutes or so, of viewing.
We crossed back over the river...

...and make our way back east, towards the beginning.
We stopped to check out Squakum Campground, along the way back...looked rather dismal and in need of some upkeep.

Travelling along the north shore of Frances Lake....

Fall colours....

We are nearing the junction of Nahatlatch and Kookipi FSR's...but I stop to take this last shot.

The Nahatlatch area is well-worth visiting, but be warned that the road surface can vary with the seasons. On our way out, we passed the grader as he was dragging his blade and breaking all the embedded rocks, so keep that in mind when you travel this road; broken rocks are like razor blades and can slice tires to ribbons.
We may visit again next season and attempt to reach the Fire Lookout...or maybe return to Grizzly Falls and see how it flows during the freshet or at the peak of summer...