Photo of Twin Falls by Dr J.D. Hascup.

Twin Falls run year-round for one very good reason: the area around North Bend receives more than 90 inches of rain each year. Seattle--just 35 miles west--gets half that much. The South Fork Snoqualmie River takes that massive amount of rainfall and puts it to use entertaining hikers. The river squeezes into a narrow rocky gorge before tumbling over a very impressive stairstep falls. Then, when the water has been churned into a frothy torrent, it plunges over a 150-foot rock wall, creating the stunning cascade of the Lower Twin Falls.

The first 0.7 mile of the trail pass through moss-laden forest along the shores of the South Fork Snoqualmie River. This flat mile provides kids plenty of opportunity to explore massive old nurse logs (fallen trees that act as nurseries for newly sprouted trees) and other interesting forest formations. Given the bounty of rain, and the lush forest growth, this area feels almost like an Olympic Peninsula rain forest--just without the massive cedars and hemlocks.

After this long, flat run the trail climbs gently up a series of long switchbacks. About 1 mile out, you'll find a short spur trail on the right--this leads to a fantastic overlook of the lower falls, the mighty 150-foot cascade. Back on the main trail, you'll continue to climb another 0.5 mile or so to a bridge that takes you over the river gorge, directly between two of the stairstep falls.