BAR DIVIDE FALLS |
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RATING - 54.0
VR - 6.0 (Med) HR - 6 SR - 18/20 TYPE OF APPROACH - Bushwhack DIFFICULTY - Extremely Difficult LOCATION - Sholes Basin TYPE - Tiered HEIGHT - 165' WIDTH - 10' GPS - N48 49.661 W121 47.203 ELEVATION - 4112' |
The waterfall can also be seen from across the valley on the Cougar Divide Trail but you have to know right where to look in order to see it. |
| DIRECTIONS -
Getting to Bar Divide Falls is extremely difficult. Follow the
directions to Upper Bar Divide Falls.
From there, continue downstream along the top of the ridge for about a mile
to a great view of the falls. This is entirely off trail and gets
pretty steep towards the end. If you are lucky you will run into a
goat path for the last 1000' or so that makes it slightly easier. Save
some energy for the loooooong climb back up to the trail. NEARBY WATERFALLS - Sholes Glacier Falls, Upper Bar Divide Falls, Upper Sholes Creek Falls |
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ADDITIONAL
PICTURES (CLICK TO ENLARGE) AND VIDEO
 Bar Divide Falls |
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Bar
Divide Falls quickly became one of my favorite waterfalls after seeing it in
person. The creek drops a total of 165' in a beautiful, rugged canyon.
The falls begin with a series of cascades. The creek then slides down
a concave trough and then launches itself outward, plunging in a 117' tall
main tier. The area is surrounded by a variety of greenery, providing
a rather shocking contrast to the scene just a short distance upstream.
There are two options for viewing the falls from up close, both of which are
fairly dangerous. The safer of the two is from the west side of the
creek atop a large cliff. From this side, only part of the main drop
can be seen. From the east side, it is possible to see the entire
waterfall (see photo on the left), but it requires scrambling across a tiny
ledge, no more than 2' wide in places. If you can get there, you'll
see a site less than a handful of people have ever seen (maybe only one?).