Burton Creek Falls

On March 5, we drove up Wind River to try to follow the new Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde map that Johnny picked up from the tribal forestry office. It was created for tribal members to locate wood cutting areas, and has road numbers on that are not on our old forest map. By following it, we were able to find the headwaters of Burton Creek. We stopped at an old road with the number 770B on it just past Burton Creek. I decided to hike up the road, since it paralleled Burton Creek. In a very short distance, I heard a waterfall! And soon was able to see it. Woohoo!

 We hiked down so Johnny could try to figure out the height with his triangle system. He uses a clinometer to find a point exactly even with the top of the falls and another point exactly even with the bottom of the falls. We then measure the distance between those two points. With some math magic, he calculates the height of the falls. By Johnny's measurements, it is 35.5 feet high.

I just took a lot of photos. Such a pretty falls and so close to a road. It's steep to hike down to the base of the falls if one wants to get up close, but it's quite viewable from the old road 770B on top of the bank (first photo above).

 

Using itouch maps, I came up with virtually the same lat/long as the Northwest Waterfall Survey has so am using theirs.

45.16833

-123.586694

http://www.waterfallsnorthwest.com/nws/falls.php?num=4081

The reason we could not get to this point in February when we came up from Willamina was because the 750 road was blocked off. The blockade was gone today. If that road is unblocked, the falls can be reached either from Grand Ronde up Agency Creek Rd. to Wind River (200) to 770 to 700  to 750 to 770A, where 770B is located. (A guide who knows the roads is advisable.) Alternatively, one can come up from Willamina on Willamina Creek Rd. to Coast Creek Rd. to 700, 750, etc. But there is no number at the 700/750 junction and that's where the 750 was blocked when we came in Feb. The tribal map shows 760 road coming off the 700 to reach 770 but as far as we can determine, it does not in reality. The falls is on tribal land but the roads are open to the public most of the time. During last summer's drought, the reservation lands were closed because of extreme fire danger.

It is a lovely falls and we were thrilled to find it today.