McDonald Falls in August 2010
About 2 hours outside of downtown Vancouver, you can find Cascade Falls Regional Park. For mid-August, this park was relatively popular, though it does take some time to get to. The drive is really beautiful, though. If you’re looking for another waterfall that is relatively easy to visit, and yet has far fewer visitors, search for McDonald Falls. It’s only 2 miles or so from Cascade Falls.
After following the directions below, you’ll end up very close to the falls. You will have to hike downhill, and if I recall, there wasn’t an extremely clear, defined path. It was still not that difficult. I think there may have been two separate drops, and one of the drops was partially blocked by trees next to the creek. The other drop was far more visible. The photo next door may look different than what you experience, at least somewhat…I had a 55-200 mm lens that made it far more difficult to photograph the whole falls, and I had no wish to hike back up the hill, get the other lens, and repeat the process over again! It does require some effort!
Directions:
- If you’re coming from Transcanadian Highway 1, you’ll want to exit toward Mission onto BC-7.
- Drive east of Mission on BC-7 for about 6.5 km to Sylvester Rd.
- Turn left on Sylvester Rd. Head 13 km down Sylvester Rd.
- After a distance, you’ll see a sign for Cascade Falls. Keep heading down that road a short distance, where Lost Creek Forest Service Road starts. It’s a dirt road, so it’s pretty difficult to miss. McDonald Falls is about 1.3 miles down that road past the bridge over Munro Creek.
Accessibility: 6/10 (moderate)
Height: 80′
Length of Hike: 0.2 miles round-trip
Where in the World is McDonald Falls?
The Waterfall Record 