Eastatoe Narrows is an interesting sluice waterfall in the Eastatoe Creek Heritage Preserve. This is a spur trail off of the Foothills Trail near Hwy 178 and makes for a nice little 5 mile out-and-back hike.
Aside from the Foothills Trail traffic, the preserve is very secluded. This area specifically features several established (primitive) camping sites next to the water. The camping is in the middle of a gorge, so it take work for anyone to drop by.
The map point below will take you to the trail head gate. Do not block the gate. Walk on the old forestry road for a couple of miles. A double blaze will direct you to a single-track trail on your left. This is the descent into the gorge and is the most strenuous section of the hike.
Eventually, the trail will fork. You can go left to access the camp sites or you can go right to access the falls overlook. It’s pretty impressive.
I chose to climb down to the creek bed, cross the stream, and then climb to the top of the falls. It was raining when I was there, so the rocks were very slick. In retrospect, this was pretty reckless. It would have made more sense to backtrack to the campsites and then rock hop to the top of the falls.
Navigate
I’m not sure if the map below is exactly accurate. Drive past the Foothills Trail parking area (gravel lot) until you see the red gate on your left. There is signage for Eastatoe Gorge Spur. This is the trailhead.
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I learned about this waterfall from a book that I own and highly recommend.
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