Skip to content

Otter Falls

Otter Falls, seen from above at true elevation

Otter Falls is a waterfall in Washington, at a modelled elevation of 726 m. Big Snow Mountain stands 2,036 m to the southeast, 6.1 miles off. The nearest named place is Big Creek Falls, a waterfall 0.7 miles away. Cascade Loop passes 9.5 miles off.

The story

Otter Falls (also Otter Slide, Otter Slide Falls or Otter Creek Falls) is a waterfall in King County, Washington; on the southern wall of Mount Anderson. It drops about 1,600 feet (490 m) in all, but due to the relatively moderate pitch of the mountainside, only about 1/3 of the total height can be seen from the ground. The drainage of Otter Creek, which feeds the falls, is fairly small, and consists mostly of granite which does not retain water. Therefore, the waterfall relies entirely on snowmelt to flow and often dries up by July. Otter Creek is a tributary of the Taylor River that flows about 1 mile (1.6 km) off Mount Anderson, 1/2 of which is spent tumbling off these falls.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Wikidata Q37451, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.

What the record says

Height
365.8 m

What to expect

Official site

How to reach it

Coordinates47.59001, -121.46770

Named places within 25 miles

Waterfalls
Peaks
Parks
  • Great Northern & Cascade Railway Park: 9.6 mi
  • Skykomish City Ball Park: 10.1 mi
  • Baring Community Park: 12.6 mi
  • Hyak Sno-Parks: 14.2 mi
  • Tanner Landing Park: 15.3 mi
Attractions: 22
  • Tubing Park: 12.8 mi
  • Amazonia: 14.2 mi
  • Actual Cave: 14.2 mi
  • Club Paradiso: 14.2 mi
  • Semi Wall: 14.3 mi
Cliffs: 17
  • Spouse Wall: 3.8 mi
  • East Quartz Camp: 5.0 mi
  • West Quartz Camp: 5.1 mi
  • Lower Pratt Climbing Area: 6.4 mi
  • Alpental Cliffs: 10.5 mi
Historic sites: 17
Nature reserves: 10
Artworks: 10
Museums: 9
  • Great Northern and Cascade Railways: 9.6 mi
  • Skykomish Historical Society: 9.6 mi
  • Skykomish Historical Society: 9.6 mi
  • Washington State Ski & Snowboard Museum: 11.9 mi
  • Snoqualmie Valley Historical Museum: 16.4 mi
Picnic sites: 8
Ghost towns: 8
Rest areas: 2
Gardens: 2
  • Sultan Materials: 24.1 mi
  • Kokopelli Gardens: 24.8 mi
Springs: 1
  • Canyon Spring: 18.1 mi
Beaches: 1
  • Normandy Beach: 21.6 mi

Summits around it

The highest named summits within 9.0 miles of Otter Falls. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.

SummitBearingElevationDistance
Big Snow MountainSE 129°2,036 m6.1 mi
Burntboot PeakSE 133°1,987 m9.0 mi
Iron Cap MountainESE 106°1,935 m8.9 mi
Wild Goat PeakESE 113°1,923 m6.7 mi
Camp Robber PeakESE 102°1,916 m6.5 mi
Malachite PeakENE 68°1,908 m6.3 mi
Kaleetan PeakS 183°1,907.7 m8.8 mi
Tourmaline PeakESE 106°1,903 m7.0 mi

When to go

Light through the year

DateSunriseGolden hourSunset
March equinox07:1018:3819:19
June solstice05:0920:2021:08
September equinox06:5318:2519:05
December solstice07:5215:2516:18

Local time (America/Los_Angeles).

Climate normals

Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Sep.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg °F373943485559646560504236
Precip in16.710.611.98.45.04.01.71.94.812.318.114.6

1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Baring, 13 mi away.

Months at or above the year’s average flow: Nov–Jan, Mar–Jun — fullest in May, leanest in Sep.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Mean cfs1,6131,3981,5341,6892,9812,3278263172679881,9441,929

USGS monthly mean discharge at gauge South Fork Skykomish River AT Skykomish, WA, 10 mi away — the nearest gauge, which can sit on a different stream.

Where this comes from

Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.

OpenStreetMapWikidataOfficial site

OpenStreetMap element node/2363340449

More waterfalls in Washington

Day trips start here

Drive to it

Byway plans a real route around stops like this one.

Private beta · Free to join

Take the scenic way to Otter Falls.

Byway plans around your taste, verified places, real weather and opening hours — then opens every leg in Google Maps with one tap.

Private beta · Free to join · No card · Invite when a spot opens