Twin Falls is actually the very first hike I picked out in Washington–before I knew I was going to move here. We were visiting my sister and her family over the winter holidays. I wanted to plan a hike that we could bring our then 2-year-old nephew along on. Something short, something within a 45 minute drive of my sister’s house, and something that would still be nice on a rainy, cloudy day. Twin Falls met all my criteria, so that’s where we went! It was funny though, because despite the careful planning, my nephew was so grouchy when we arrived that my brother in law waited with him in the car for a while before running up the trail to meet my husband and me at the top of the falls. It was wild!
Last weekend, I went back to Twin Falls. Coming off the high of Mount Storm King, and also the exhaustion from making that long drive to Olympic National Park, I wanted to take a hike but I didn’t want to have to think so much about it. The weather forecast was dreary, and I wanted something that would be just a few hours as opposed to the whole day. So back we went to Twin Falls.
Twin Falls Trail Review
- Hiked: late January
- Distance from Seattle: 40 minutes
- Accessibility: All paved highway and a paved road
- Length: 3 miles round trip
- Difficulty: 2/10
- Crowds: 5/10
- Trail views: 3/10
- Water features: 8/10
- Overall: 8/10
You’ll need a Discover Pass to park here. These can be purchased for one year for $30 (and worth it if you plan on hiking much at all) or as a day pass for $10. So many hikes in the greater Seattle area require a Discover Pass that it’s an excellent investment.
For what it is, Twin Falls is a great hike. The trail is wide, easy to follow, and mainly flat or gently inclined. It starts off meandering along the edge of the river, which, when it hasn’t just rained, is very transparent and blue/green. I stopped off at multiple spots along this first section of the trail to marvel at the water. It looks so inviting. The riverside areas are quite possibly my favorite thing about this trail.
My friend Madison somewhat recently asked me what it would take for me to do a repeat hike. She knows me well–I like to seek the novel, chase new experiences, and constantly expand my horizons. I don’t even remember what I told her, to be honest, but my preference, especially since I’m still so new to Washington, is to not repeat hikes yet. There’s so much to experience out there! This tendency to appreciate the novel goes back to when I was little. In fact, as a child, I asked my parents why we were going to the same place for vacation every year, when there was so much of the world to explore. Of course they had their reasons! But, I was the one who planned our family trip to Hawaii when I was 13, and also the one who planned our family trip to (drum roll, please…) Olympic National Park when I was 17!
But Twin Falls was repeatable. I’m glad I did it again. The last time we came here just over a year ago, it was raining. The water did not look like this, because the rain kicks up the sediment at the bottom of the river. This glassy, green, totally transparent water was out of this world gorgeous, and a reminder that just because you may do the same hike twice, it will always be a different experience, in some way or another.
Climbing up past the beautiful riverside, the trail starts to get a little steeper. It’s still a fantastic trail: well-marked, easy footing, and cool staircase-like structures that keep the trail in great shape. Though there were a couple places with some mud, it was nothing too crazy.
All in all, Twin Falls hike offers great pay off for your work (which isn’t too significant in the first place!). It’s a perfect wintry hike and one that is fitting for many different ages and abilities. Definitely be sure to visit if you live in the area.
Elizabeth Seeks 