Lava Canyon Falls
Washington · 132-foot drop · Last verified 2026-05-15
Lava Canyon Falls is running at 359 cfs — well above seasonal normal. June averages 4.4" of precipitation here — expect high flow.
Right now
Streamflow
359 cfs
MUDDY RIVER BELOW CLEAR · 1h ago
Overnight
43°F
Chance Light Rain
Wednesday
55°F
Chance Light Rain then Partly Sunny
Today's daylight
Sunrise 5:17 AM · Sunset 8:58 PM · 15h 42m
Snapshot built 10m ago. Sources: USGS · NWS PQR.
Lava Canyon Falls is a waterfall in Washington. It drops roughly 132 feet. Access details and conditions have not yet been verified in person by Fallspots — the data on this page comes from OpenStreetMap and USGS GNIS.
Lava Canyon Falls drops 200 feet along the Muddy River in Skamania County, Washington.
Is the water flowing right now?
Most waterfall sites don't tell you this. The waterfall itself is almost never gauged, but a USGS streamgage in the same watershed can tell you whether snowmelt has started, peaked, or run dry.
USGS gage 14216500 · 7.7 mi away
MUDDY RIVER BELOW CLEAR CREEK NEAR COUGAR, WA
View live discharge data →
30-day streamflow
Above 30-day average↻ Same date last year: 465 cfs · 103% of last year — similar
When to go (from the climate data, not our opinion)
Monthly averages from Open-Meteo's reanalysis dataset (2020–2024). Highlighted months are when we think the waterfall is at its best — but the numbers are the numbers regardless.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip (in) | Snow days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 37 | 28 | 20.7 | 18.2 |
| Feb | 37 | 26 | 11.4 | 18.8 |
| Mar | 41 | 28 | 8.8 | 16.4 |
| Apr | 47 | 31 | 6.6 | 11.4 |
| May | 57 | 39 | 5.3 | 4.2 |
| Jun | 65 | 46 | 4.4 | 0.6 |
| Jul | 77 | 52 | 0.3 | 0 |
| Aug | 76 | 53 | 0.7 | 0 |
| Sep | 69 | 49 | 4.5 | 0 |
| Oct | 56 | 41 | 8.9 | 2.2 |
| Nov | 41 | 31 | 17.7 | 12.6 |
| Dec | 36 | 28 | 17.9 | 19.2 |
Source: Open-Meteo Historical Weather API · ERA5 reanalysis 2020–2024.
Compare to nearby falls
If this one isn't the right fit, here's how it stacks up against the closest documented falls. Every column is filterable on the site — not buried in 13,000 reviews.
| Waterfall | Distance | Height | Trail | Dogs | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lava Canyon Falls (this page) | — | 132 ft | — | — | — |
| Chocolate Falls | 4 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Paradise Falls | 6 mi | 126 ft | — | — | — |
| Loowit Falls | 6 mi | 186 ft | — | — | — |
| Middle Loowit Falls | 6 mi | — | — | — | — |
| Step Falls | 6 mi | 115 ft | — | — | — |
Related waterfalls
Similar height (~132 ft)
- Alkali Falls131 ft
- Black Chasm Falls131 ft
- Copper Lake Falls131 ft
- Dismal Falls131 ft
- Ensminger Falls131 ft
Questions visitors ask about Lava Canyon Falls
Answers built from our structured data. If a question isn't here, the fact is unverified — we'd rather omit than guess.
How tall is Lava Canyon Falls?
Lava Canyon Falls is 132 feet (40.2 m) tall. Height is sourced from OSM.
How far is Lava Canyon Falls from a major city?
Lava Canyon Falls is 13 miles from Cougar (about 19 minutes' drive).
More waterfalls in Washington
Where it is
46.1700, -122.0829
Sources and live status
Where we got the data, and where to check current conditions before you drive.
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lava_Canyon_Falls
Wikidata (Q6502183)
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6502183
Last verified by Fallspots: 2026-05-15
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Marina and Theo verify pages one road trip at a time. If you've been to Lava Canyon Falls recently, your local knowledge improves the page for everyone. Pick the kind of contribution that fits — every email lands in our inbox and gets read (and credited when we publish).
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