Hiking Closure at Palouse Falls State Park

UPDATE: TRI CITY HERALD STORY

Hiking is no longer allowed at Palouse Falls State Park - Parking lot viewpoint remains open

  Plans to spend much of the day hiking above and below Palouse Falls didn't work out today.

  Apparently Washington State Parks has shut down ALL hiking at Palouse Falls State Park and it sounds like it could be a permanent closure. 

  Trails to both top and bottom of falls are/were amazing and the Palouse River Canyon is one of the most spectacular features created by the Ice Age Floods - fencing now surrounds parking lot, camping and day use areas!

Several emergency calls and repeated vandalism to an irrigation pipe led to the closure according to Whitman Pioneer (link below).

Whitman Pioneer story with comments from State Park Ranger: http://whitmanpioneer.com/news/2015/11/17/palouse-falls-rough-draft-layout-purposes-only/

View from two of the Palouse Falls vantage points points that are now behind locked gates. Parking lot viewpoint remains open. Hopefully, Washington State Parks can find a way to keep visitors safe AND maintain some sort of hiking access to both the north rim and base of the falls. Photos taken recent years. Tri City Herald trail closure story today: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/article47280650.html Palouse Falls and the Palouse River Canyon are incredible features carved by the Ice Age Floods. Top photo self timer and run. #washingtontrails #easternwa #hikewashington #palousefalls #spokane #tricities #palouse #rei #iceagefloods #washingtonstate #washingtonexplored #washingtonwonders #rei1440project #washingtonstateparks #geology #geologyrocks #wanderwashington #livewashington #hiking #outdoors #thatpnwlife #frozenwaterfall

A photo posted by Tom Foster (@hugefloods) on Dec 1, 2015 at 5:54am PST