Sandy beach
Cliff jumping
Hike-in Required
Sensitive Habitat

Youngs River Falls was first discovered in 1806 by a hunting party of the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery that was departing from their nearby winter accommodations at Fort Clatsop.

Today the 50-foot waterfall is an extremely popular local swimming hole during the summer months and a unique roadside attraction during the winter months. The falls are located roughly 10 miles south of Astoria, aren't close to much of anything else, and are somewhat difficult to find, so follow the directions closely. Once you've reached the parking area, numerous paths to the falls lead down through an old-growth grove of Sitka spruce. A broad pebbled beach makes for the perfect place to lay down a towel and soak up the summer sun. Mist from the falls will cool you off, and there is a deep pool in the river adjacent to the beach.

Logistics + Planning

Parking Pass

Not Required


50-foot waterfall. Large pebble beach. Deep swimming hole.


Very heavily used in summer months.


Field Guide

Nearby Adventures


There's a rectilinear rock right at the edge of the water shaped like a giant Adirondack chair--perfect for reclining and watching the water ouzels catch fish!
We were there with granddaughter on Oct 3rd and the salmon were running very heavily to the pool below the falls. It was magnificent, but very smelly as the fish were ending their lives in that reach of the river. You would not want to go wading in the water that time of year because of smell and water quality, but it was still a great place to show a young person the end point of a salmon's life and talk about the salmon life cycle.
We live about 15 minutes from this waterfall. It's a great place to go on our rare hot days on the coast.
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