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Who knew the North Umpqua had so many waterfalls?  I sure didn’t.  But following our recent tour, I’m impressed.

I’ve certainly traveled the North Umpqua before, but I’ve actually not spent the time I would have liked to actually.  I certainly knew it was a place of great beauty, but other than a day of fishing a small stretch I really hadn’t had the time to dig in.  This past weekend was the first attempt to remedy that.

After stumbling across a web brochure I was surprised at the number of waterfalls either on or running into the North Umpqua.  Add in a great campground and we had a weekend.

Susan Creek Camp is a nice stroll down the river to Susan Creek Falls.

We managed to make a relaxing day going to and from Susan Creek Falls and hanging around camp.  The next day was a more feverish pitch to see some (most?) of the falls along the North Umpqua.  First stop was Deadline Falls, just downstream from Susan Creek.  Deadline is a big falls along in the mainstem of the North Umpqua.

Deadline marks the downstream boundary of the coveted (complicated) fly fishing section of the North Umpqua.  There were several spin fisherman milling around beneath the falls.  After stop one we started making our way back upstream.  Fall Creek Falls was the next stop.  The lower end of the hike was looking pretty dry, but the creek came alive as we approached the falls.  It’s been a bit dry over the past few months in Oregon, and Fall Creek was surely proof of it.

It is beginning to feel a lot like fall in Oregon.  Days are getting shorter and leaves are starting to turn.

After Fall Creek we moved on to explore a bit of Steamboat Creek.  Steamboat is a major tributary to the North Umpqua.  Steelhead and Salmon come here to spawn.  Flow was a bit low, so all we were able to view was fingerlings.  I’d like to get back and explore this drainage more extensively, get up on the ridgetops and really get a view of this country a bit more.  This visit was limited to a quick visit up stream about 10 miles.  First stop was Little Falls, which, predictably was running pretty low but still had some interesting flow patterns.

We also made our way up to Steamboat Falls.  Steamboat Falls seemed to be in the path of fisheries progress, so most of the water was running through an underground fish ladder while a small trickle was running over a faux falls.  Not the most scenic stop of the weekend.

After Steamboat Creek we kept it moving on to Tokatee Falls.  Stunning water to be sure.

The hits just kept on coming.

Watson..(at 272 feet, tallest in Southern Oregon)

Whitehorse (maybe my favorite of the day)..

And then Clearwater…

Daylight was fleeting and we had to move past a few falls a bit too fast.  Maybe there is a reason to come back?  If not for a few missed falls, then to see the fall leaves in a different stage of colors.

We left the Umpqua and moved on to the Deschutes on the way home.

I’m already looking forward to another weekend on the Umpqua.