On the first weekend of spring I experienced a 12-mile hike that would have delighted lovers of waterfalls throughout the world – – – 620-foot Multnomah Falls, 80-foot Hidden Falls, 90-foot Weisendanger Falls, 50 foot-Dutchman Falls and 15-foot Little Multnomah Falls.

Throw in a climb to a 2,450-foot old fire lookout site, sprinkle in some early wildflowers and you have the makings of an amazing trek.

After a steep, but scenic 2,000-foot climb to the top of the cliffs overlooking the Columbia River Gorge, it was an easy stroll of less than a mile to Devils Rest. The Rest is the highest point in the far Western Gorge but has no views. Nonetheless it made a nice location for a rest and a snack.

To lengthen the hike and add some variety, I descended to Angels Rest before looping back to the Multnomah Canyon via the Wakeena Trail.

In places the forest floor was dotted with the brilliant whites of trillium lilies as far as I could see. And, to add a little icing to the cake, I spotted my first wild orchid of the year.