LITTLE SANDY FALLS  
RATING - 46.0

Little Sandy Falls is a beautiful waterfall located in the heart of a very rough and rugged canyon.  The waterfall consists of a 137' tall curtain of water, a 65' tall plunge, and 39' worth of cascades between the two.  Below the falls the creek continues to run through a mess of jagged boulders as it cascades its way further down the mountainside.  The first time I visited I got a nice view from the base (see left), but didn't climb up to the upper tier.  That was a mistake, because the upper tier is absolutely stunning.  This is a difficult waterfall to get to, but it's absolutely beautiful and one of my favorites on Mt. Baker.

As an added bonus, there is a small, seasonal waterfall that can be seen just before reaching Little Sandy Falls.  It plunges about 150' over the same formation as Little Sandy (see Additional Pictures below).  On my first trip into the falls, this seasonal stream was almost dry, but on the second one it was quite impressive, although I never got close enough to take pictures.

My first trip into the falls I bushwhacked up the creek a little over a mile each way.  It took me seven hours round trip and was among the worst bushwhacks I've ever done.  My recent trip I followed an old road to get there.  It's a much longer trip (10 miles round trip), but it's much more enjoyable for the most part.		 OTHER PICTURES

Small, seasonal waterfall near Little Sandy Falls     Side view of the 50' bottom tier

 Wider look at Little Sandy Falls from downstream

 

 Looking up at the top of the falls

      Upper tier from the side

VR - 4.0 (M/Sm)

HR - 7.0

SR - 18/20

TYPE OF APPROACH - Trail + Bushwhack

DIFFICULTY - Extremely Difficult

LOCATION - Baker Lake Area

TYPE - Tiered

HEIGHT - 241' *

WIDTH -  15'
DIRECTIONS - Drive out Baker Lake Road and turn right onto FR 1124.  In about half a mile the road will fork with both forks containing a gate.  Park here.  Hike up the left hand road for just under 5 miles to the 6th corner in the road.  You should hear a small stream off the road.  Leave the road and head up along the edge of the canyon.  After about 1/4 of a mile you should hear the falls.  There is one very steep, but relatively safe route into the canyon.  Look for three large trees right on the lip of the canyon, one of which is leaning out over the edge and follow the steep ridge down.
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