Hiking to American Falls near Priest Lake, Idaho

When we asked the local ranger at Priest Lake what might be an enjoyable hike in the area, she recommended we hike to American Falls.  It was a 2 hour drive north to the trailhead, and by the time we finished the hike, we were within 1 mile of the Canadian border in northern Idaho.

We got up early and started the long drive.  Most of our route was gravel back roads.  We passed several beautiful mountain lakes as we headed north:

Along the way, we stopped at the Roosevelt Grove of Ancient Cedars.  The Roosevelt Grove is an old growth cedar forest with trees that are 4-12 feet in diameter and 150 feet tall. Although 75% of the original grove was destroyed by a fire in 1926. The average age of the remaining trees is 800 years, with a few survivors of the fire remaining that are 2000-3000 years old.

A short trail from the lower grove leads to the base of Lower Granite Falls. Here, Granite Creek cascades down a narrow, sheer rock wall with a thunderous roar:

A one-mile loop trail from the lower cedar grove leads to vista points above the Lower falls where both Lower and Upper Granite Falls may be viewed. We continued another 1/2 mile from the vista points and arrived at the upper cedar grove, where Kathy found one of her biggest, oldest friends, who gave her a hug:

Having visited the Ancient Cedars, we continued on our Jeep Journey to the trailhead:

Eventually, we reached our destination.  Here, David tries to read to sign to determine if this was the trail:

It must have been, because Kathy checked with the Three Amigos, who told her we were on the right track:

The trail gave us lots of surprises, such as huckleberries, Saskatoon berries, thimbleberries, and some colorful fungi:

We also stumbled across some ancient giants who, having fallen, had to be sawed to let hikers pass along the trail:

Eventually our trail, Continental Trail #28, intersected the Upper Priest River Trail, #308, toward American Falls:

After another 1.5 miles, we reached American Falls, which fell impressively and noisily into a blue-green pool:

After we had lunch, David climbed a steep, rocky trail to overlook the falls and snapped this view of it:

It seemed such a short time, and we were on our way back to the trailhead.  Before we turned uphill, we spotted these very unusual streamside plants:

The entire area had been devastated by wildfire years ago, and, as we hiked, we spotted the charred remains of one old cedar beside the river:

The path wasn't entirely clear.  Here, Kathy demonstrates the proper method for overcoming obstacles:

Another hour, and we were on our way back to our campground.  As we drove, we thought back on the falls and remembered the thundering roar of its waters: