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Abiqua Falls is big and impressive, though known to relatively few, thanks it’s hard-to-find trailhead and rough scrambling required to navigate the “trail”.  The falls are renowned for the outstanding display of basalt columns in its massive amphitheater. The striking columns result from vertical cracks formed as the basalt lava flow cooled some 15 million years ago. The orange tint to some of the rock columns comes from orange and yellow lichens that grow on the vertical cliff walls.

For many years the land around the falls has been held by the Mount Angel Abby Foundation, and public access was allowed. Earlier this year, however, the property abruptly went up for sale, triggering a mad scramble by waterfall lovers and state legislators to secure the falls under public ownership. A new bill that authorizes purchase of the falls and surrounding area has since been signed into law, and envisions a new state park with formal trails that improve on the sketchy user-built routes that exist today. 

This post is a twofer, with a view of Abiqua Falls and a second image of the beautiful gorge just downstream that will also be forever protected in the new state park.

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Image Description: There are two images shown. The first image shows tall, powerful Abiqua Falls thundering over a cliff made up of hundreds of thin, dark basalt columns, some decorated with green moss and orange lichens. Mist from the waterfall floats above a green splash pool. In the foreground, a small pool among river cobbles reflects the falls. A basalt boulder with patches of green moss borders the right side of the pool.

The second image shows a very quiet section of Abiqua Creek, just downstream from the falls. The water is very still, and reflects the bright green and yellow mosses that blanket the boulders and cliffs bordering the stream. A pair of Bigleaf maple trees frame the stream on both sides, their trunks and limbs also covered in moss. Black basalt boulders are scattered in the stream in the foreground, also capped with bright green moss.

Photo © WyEast Images (2026)