The rockpile at Devils Rest (Jeff Statt)

Creepy trees at Devils Rest (Steve Hart)

End of trail sign at Devils Rest (bobcat)

• Hikes to this location:
  • Angels Rest-Devils Rest Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Devils Rest via Wahkeena Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Multnomah Falls-Devils Rest Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Palmer Mill Road-Devils Rest Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)

• Weather forecast: NWS/NOAA
• Maps: Oregon Hikers Maps Google Maps
• Latitude, Longitude: 45.56228, -122.12807
• Elevation: 2435 feet

Description

Devils Rest is a high promontory between Angels Rest and Larch Mountain on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge. It is an obvious forest-covered knob when looking at the hillside from the Washington side of the river, eclipsed only by Larch Mountain and Nesmith Point in terms of prominence in this area. Devils Rest is part of the Boring Lava Field, only a million or so years old, and thus much more youthful than the Columbia River Basalts that dominate the geology of the Gorge.

When you reach Devils Rest, you will wonder, "Is this it?" No, it is not one of the most picturesque of destinations in the Gorge. This is truly one of those "it's not about the destination, it's about the trip there" locations! Many people choose this as their goal due to the relative quiet compared to other area Gorge trails and for the two outstanding viewpoints below the summit.

Most people who come to Devils Rest start at either Wahkeena Falls, Multnomah Falls or the Angels Rest Trailhead, and there a half-dozen or more loop and shuttle options in the area, including some unofficial and recently restored trails. For most of these options you have to traverse about 2100 feet of elevation in about three miles, making this a decent quad warmer. The obvious junction below the summit leads to the network of trails called Red Shorts Cut, Devils Fork, and Foxglove Way - all between Devils Rest and the Angels Rest Trail. From the east side of the Devils Rest rockpile, the steep Primrose Path, marked with whimsical signs and totally within the 2017 fire zone, leads down to join the Angels Rest Trail just east of the Mist Creek Footbridge.

If you are a lover of waterfalls, you can't go wrong starting at either Wahkeena or Multnomah Falls, but the less popular Angels Rest-Devils Rest Loop Hike is a nice option, giving you a ying-yang contrast between the two landmarks, a slightly longer route (better for conditioning), and a good sampling of the area's forests after the 1991 and 2017 fires.

History

Devils Rest sits on land which was once owned by Charles Coopey, for whom Coopey Creek and Coopey Falls are named. Coopey, an Englishman, named the summit Eagle Eyrie. He eventually gave the land to the City of Portland, which also owned Multnomah Falls, in the 1920s. In 1939 the City of Portland transferred all of its Columbia Gorge holdings south of the railway to the U.S. Forest Service.

More Links

• "Angels Rest and Devils Rest, Oregon" (The Columbia River: A Photographic Journey)
• Devil’s Rest Trail A6 (Curious Gorge Blog)
• Wahkeena Falls ~ Devils Rest Loop Hike (Northwest Hiker)
• Angel's Rest ~ Wahkeena Springs ~ Devil's Rest Loop Hike (Northwest Hiker)

Contributors

• Stevefromdodge (creator)
• jeffstatt
• aircooled