Little Zigzag Falls, OR

Vicinity Location: The trailhead is about 45 miles southeast of Portland, Oregon in the Mt. Hood National Forest.

Directions:
From Portland take I-84 East to the Wood Village, exit (16A). Head south and turn left onto NE Burnside Rd. Heading east, Burnside will merge into Highway 26.

Follow Highway 26 east for 33.3 miles to 39 Road/Twin Bridges Road in Rhododendron

Turn left onto 39 Road/Twin Bridges Road and drive 2.2 miles to the parking area.

In winter, it is required to carry chains or have traction devices.

A Northwest Forest Permit is required to park here.

There are pit toilets at the trailhead.

Length and Elevation:
0.8 Mile roundtrip. Elevation at the trailhead is 3,200 feet. Total ascent is 125 feet and total descent is 125 feet. Highest point is at 3,320 feet. Lowest point is 3,200 feet.

Trail:
Little Zigzag Falls Trail #795C with connection to Pioneer Bridle Trail #755.

There is at least one geocache for this trail at: N 45° 18.851 W 121° 47.766 Info at Geocaching.com.

Trail Maps:
Topo Map, Download Garmin .gpx file, Open Garmin .gpx file

Review: June 26, 2020
The old Highway 26 ends here at the trailhead and there is a fair-sized parking lot. From the trailhead walk along the stream up towards the waterfall.

Gently ascend the beside the stream through a lush second-growth forest. The trail is wide and well-maintained and is withing inches of the creek in places. You’ll enjoy the sights and sounds as you walk up the forest trail.

On a sunny day dappled sunlight splashes on the trail and creek. The path is packed dirt with a thin layer of fir needles covering the tread. The trees here are mainly a mixture of hemlock and cedar. The cedars grow well here because this area is very damp. There are trickles of water and skunk cabbage scattered in the forest. There is a lot of deadfall along this trail which means  severe winter storms that blast the area as they batter Mt. Hood. The tree canopy shades out a lot of undergrowth but there are ferns, violets, trillium, huckleberries, and skunk cabbages on the forest floor.

Near the falls the trail branches and the lower trail goes over a very short distance to the base of the falls where there is a nice bench to sit on. The upper trail is a scramble and looks dangerous.

This is a great hike for kids as they can play in the water of the small creek but be careful around all the fallen logs. It is such a short hike that it should be combined with another activity.

Enjoy the photos!!
Gallery Pics
Switchback Steve

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