Merrill Lake Conservation Area - Kalama River Falls — Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025

We opted for the road route. There were a few cars at the gate around 11 AM. The road route is great for larger groups or groups with kids. It might be suitable for a person that needs a little extra space as they walk. A really good sturdy stroller could probably be OK up until the trail offshoot to Kalama Falls. Most of the groups we saw were traveling with a dog, including us. Everyone was off leash until they saw us. They were on leash and so they would leash up. We weren’t paying close enough attention to the instructions and went across the single track concrete bridge for about a quarter mile before we figured out that we did it wrong. We doubled back and found the clearly marked sign to the falls. Typical Pacific Northwest Trail, it was a little bit muddy. Good views of the fall and just nice to be in nature on this first day of the year. There are no restrooms or garbage cans.