Beacon Rock Hike - GPS coordinates
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area

Beacon Rock in Washington, next to the Columbia River.
This is a 10 x zoom photo taken from the Oregon side of the Columbia River.

Be sure to visit our Turf to Trees Forum >> Turf to Trees Forum. Maybe you will have a tree question, or a comment for the Forest section.

Beacon Rock is the second largest monolith true monolith in the world, believed to be the remaining plug or core of an ancient mountain.

The rock of Gilbraltar is the largest monolith. Apparently, Uluru in Australia, and others, are not true single rock monoliths.

Enter these GPS coordinates online and zoom-in:

45.629135, -122.021342 approximate parking and north side of rock
45.662598, -121.901801 Bridge of the Gods: cross over from OR to WA

Click one of these for the Beacon Rock location

See note at bottom about other images and the photo albums.

Some people may not call this a hike, but it is a trail. It takes about 40 minutes to 1 hour to hike or walk from the bottom of Beacon Rock to the top. The trail is well-made, constructed back in 1915. There are about 47 switch-backs with all the handrails needed for a safe visit.

This would be a fine opportunity for people staying at a place like the Columbia River Gorge Hotel, seeking a hike that requires no gear, very little time, and is easy to get to. The setting is the windsurfing capitol of the world..

The hike to the top is about 1.8 miles round trip, or 9/10 of a mile each way. There are spectacular views of Oregon, Washington and the Columbia River Gorge, most of the way to the top.

Beacon Rock is in Beacon Rock State Park, a 4,650-acre camping park with historic significance dating back hundreds of years. The park includes 9,500 feet of Columbia River shoreline.

Beacon Rock has an open season for technical climbing too. The northwest face of Beacon Rock is open year round for technical rock climbing. The south and southeast faces are closed to technical climbing Feb. 1 through July 15 each year. The east face is closed year round due to environmental sensitivity.

Beacon Rock is immediately next to Washington Hy. SR 14, barely 40 minutes from Vancouver or east Portland if you cross the Columbia on Hy. 205. From Portland, it's about 1 hour away if you take Interstate 84 and crosss the Bridge of the Gods at Cascase Locks. The drive is pleasant and scenic on both the Washington and Oregon side of the Columbia River.

If you visit the Oregon Album below, you can find some Beacon Rock Photos. In slideshow view, if you click the tiny text under image frames, the photos will enlarge significantly - virtually full screen size. You may need to scroll underneath the box of photo and camera stats if I have that option enabled. If you look closely, handrails can be seen near the top.

Oregon Coast Seaside	Southern Oregon And The Oregon Caves	Oregon Forest Fungi, Mushrooms	Rogue River National Forest, Applegate	Redwoods Of The Pacific Coast	Oregon And Columbia River Gorge