Narada Falls

Mt Rainier National Park / Paradise, Washington, USA

About Narada Falls

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Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Narada Falls was Julie’s favorite waterfall in Mt Rainier National Park.

That was saying something considering that I could have argued in favor of Comet Falls or Spray Falls.

Rainier_385_08252011 - Narada Falls fronted by a rainbow
Narada Falls fronted by a rainbow

The key features that impressed Julie were its width and that there seemed to be a variety of ways to experience the falls.

We even visited at a time when a rainbow appeared in its mist before its long and wide drop, which was said to be 188ft high.

It was also a very easy waterfall to visit as it was right besides a large parking lot.

However, we had to make a somewhat steep but short walk to get to the lower viewpoints for a more frontal view of the main tier of Narada Falls (as shown in the photo above).

Hiking down to the front of Narada Falls

Rainier_341_08252011 - Looking across the upper drop of Narada Falls with a stone footbridge spanning over its brink
Looking across the upper drop of Narada Falls with a stone footbridge spanning over its brink

Speaking of which, the parking lot view gave us a look at the smaller upper tier of the waterfall as well as a precipitous canyon view backed by sharp peaks in the distance.

A pedestrian bridge arched over this upper tier, which allowed us to see the brink of the main tier of Narada Falls as well as the tiny people further below.

This provided us with a sense of how much of a descent we had to make if we wanted to join them for those desired frontal views.

The main viewing area in front of the falls, which probably required us about 5-10 minutes down and double that one the way back up, was consistently sprayed by mist during our visit.

Rainier_391_08252011 - Looking back at the main lookout fronting Narada Falls
Looking back at the main lookout fronting Narada Falls

While this mist produced a pretty and bold rainbow, it also made some parts of the viewing area muddy and slippery.

The trail continued further downhill beyond the main viewing area, which I took some time to explore at the advice of a local I met at Spray Falls the day before.

That was when I noticed a side trail leading closer to the rushing Narada Creek.

There appeared to be some infrastructure discouraging the use of this trail, but with enough evidence of people proceeding anyways, I went ahead and followed it to yet another different, more angled perspective of the main tier of Narada Falls.

Rainier_365_08252011 - Angled view of Narada Falls from a formerly-sanctioned lookout before barricades were erected to discourage further use of this trail
Angled view of Narada Falls from a formerly-sanctioned lookout before barricades were erected to discourage further use of this trail

I’ll leave it up to you and your conscience to see whether you want to do the same and go past the barricade.

Interestingly enough, one of the interpretive signs of Narada Falls showed a photo of it from this vantage point. Go figure…

Authorities

Narada Falls resides in Mt Rainier National Park near Puyallup in Pierce County, Washington. It is administered by the National Park Service. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, visit their website.

Maps and Routing Content are for annual subscribers. See Membership Options.
Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.
Tagged with: mt rainier, mount rainier, national park, paradise, lewis, washington, waterfall, narada creek



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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
Read More About Johnny | A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls.