13 Kid-Friendly Waterfall Hikes for Seattle-Area Families

Kids will love: Log bridges crossing small streams, wading in the chilly river, climbing rocks and staying cool on a hot day!

Highlights: If towering, moss-draped trees and pounding waterfalls are your thing, you’ll love the Boulder River Trail which has plenty of both. Winding through one of the few remaining low-elevation, old-growth forests in the Cascades, the lush, 7-mile out-and-back hike passes sword ferns, cedars and several cliffside waterfalls that plunge into the trail’s namesake river. From the start, your ears are filled with the sound of flowing, gurgling water, and this trail hugs the beautiful Boulder River most of the way to the trail’s eventual dead end.

The first waterfall, Boulder Falls, is not visible from the main trail. A mile in you’ll enter Boulder Creek Wilderness. At 1.25 miles you’ll discover the trail’s highlight, Feature Show Falls, a massive twin curtain waterfall that streams down a moss-laden cliff wall. Take a seat on the provided bench and gawk. Just beyond, hike (carefully) down to the river for a perfect lunch spot. Kids will love wading in the river here (on a hot day) and climbing the rocks. For a short hike, turn around here. Otherwise continue through the mossy, verdant wonderland to the trail’s end, have a break on the river bank, and then come back the way you came.

Distance: Up to 8.5 miles round-trip, 700 feet elevation gain

Info: Check current conditions and trip reports on the WTA website.

Directions: From I-5 take Exit 208 onto Highway 530 and head east toward Arlington. Stay on 530 through Arlington. At 23.6 miles from I-5, turn right onto French Creek Road, just after milepost 41. Follow French Creek Road to its end at the trailhead. No parking pass is required. Hikers have noted the road to the trailhead has many potholes; drive carefully!

Next stop: Murhut Falls