Shady Creek Falls is a 180-foot tiered plunge waterfall on Shady Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, Multnomah County, Oregon, directly west of Multnomah Falls. Trees screen much of it, and the falls is best seen from the interstate parking lot rather than from the trails.
The falls
Spring-fed Shady Creek leaps off the gorge wall in two plunges, the taller one 160 feet. The stream is small, averaging about 3 cubic feet per second at high water and dropping to almost nothing in dry spells, so the falls are seasonal.
Getting there
The clearest view is from the Multnomah Falls parking lot between the lanes of Interstate 84, reached from exit 31. From May 22 to September 7, 2026, between 9 am and 6 pm, driving into that lot requires a $2 timed-use permit booked on Recreation.gov; the permit doesn't guarantee a space. Riders on the Columbia Gorge Express and other shuttles don't need one.
When to go
Winter and spring bring the best flow; in dry periods the creek can stop almost entirely.
On site
Trees hide the falls from almost everywhere south of the railroad tracks, though the falls can be glimpsed from the paved path below Benson Bridge, near the rockfall net. Climbing toward the falls is discouraged, as the creek appears to supply water to Multnomah Falls Lodge. The lodge restrooms are being renovated through November 2026, with a few portable toilets in their place.
Nearby
Multnomah Falls is about 0.2 mile away, and Dutchman Falls on Multnomah Creek above it and Wahkeena Falls to the west are each about 0.4 mile.
Distances are straight-line.