As previous reported some new parking permit process starts 6/15. Parked below the lower falls after bridge crossing where trail down stream crosses RD 90. Saw no one and hiked up to falls. Many nice sandy beaches to enjoy and the woods were carpeted in flowers- inside out flowers, pathfinders,vanilla leaf, windflowers, false lily of the valley and even honeysuckle plus more. Some great old trees in this stretch too. Saw no one on this lower section though many campers at the lower falls. Falls are raging right now! Well worth the drive!

Hiked here on Saturday 6/5 and I think the rain in the forecast made it a good day to come here! There are indications on the trailhead signs but there is a new Day Use ticketing system starting 6/15 so if you are going after the 15th make sure to look into that! We did arrive early, maybe 8:30am. We parked in the Lower Falls Day Use Area, next to the campground, and there were only maybe two other cars at that time.

We hiked from the lower falls to the upper falls. There is a small detour near the middle falls, to the middle falls parking lot that means you go uphill and then down kind of steeply. The forest here is full of many kinds of ferns and we saw lots of big banana slugs. It felt like a classic Pacific Northwest hike. We got a few patches of rain on our hike but mostly ended up being cloudy which was much better than the forecast was going to be! The parking lot was more full when we got back, and while we were eating lunch a Forest Service employee was going around the parking lot checking passes.

We drove all the way down to the lower lewis falls parking area, which set us up in the perfect position to start with the breathtaking view of the falls and continue to walk as far as we liked along the river! Parking area was PACKED and there was quite a bit of trash (lots of broken glass-be careful!), but once you get onto the trails it was much cleaner. Trails were well kept and there were ropes in place to gain access to the river. Since you are right near the water there were a few places with mud, but nothing too bad. Overall absolutely breathtaking and would definitely go again!

My wife and I plus pup Buddy hiked this beautiful trail on May 4th and the falls were full and beautiful. Surprised how full the river was since the trail was so dry. We started at the Wright Meadow TH just a little south of the Lower Falls Parking area. Trail was in great condition with just a few rocky areas, no obstacles at all. We hiked to the Lower, Middle and Upper falls as well as a short walk on Copper Creek falls.

At the start you walk through a low wetland area for about a mile, thought this was Wright Meadow but it's not. There appears to have been a few buildings on this route and maybe an old orchard. The aroma along the trail was like perfume with the hot sun bringing the needle aromas out. It was a warm day, unusual for this early, and only saw 10 people, all very friendly and smiling at our luck to catch such a nice day in early May. There are a number of stairways leading to the river from the trail plus a number of short paths for riverside enjoyment. 

We hiked from the Middle Falls trailhead on the Lewis River trail, then onto the Quartz Creek trail, to Straight Creek.  

The sections of trail that we did are in good shape, with a few downed trees that were easy to get over.  The bridge at Platinum Creek looks like it's been down for a while, there is a small plank currently in place, then a short scramble up along the remains of the old bridge.  

Straight Creek was our turn around point as there was no obvious way to cross, and we were not about to ford this  wide, swift, and slippery-looking creek.