Fishhawk Falls is a waterfall in Clatsop County, Oregon at about 246 m (807 ft) above sea level. It sits roughly 26 km (16 mi) ESE of Gearhart.
Fishhawk Falls, is a waterfall located along the Fishhawk Creek in Clatsop County, in the U.S. state of Oregon. It totals 72 feet fall in one wide cascade and is the centerpiece attraction of the Lee Wooden Fishhawk Falls trailhead and Recreation Site. Fishhawk Falls is located a mile from the Jewell Meadows Wildlife Area off of Highway 202 between Jewell and Astoria. The Fishhawk Falls runs over exposed stacked basalt columns making a dike that is of identical composition to the Columbia River basalt. It forms part of a basalt flow, like those at Otter Rock and Hug Point, that rank among the longest on earth, approximately 300 miles from eastern Oregon and Washington.From the Wikipedia article “Fishhawk Falls”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Fishhawk Falls the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 54° (NE) at the June solstice and 124° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 306° (NW) in June to 236° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 67° in summer but only 21° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:18 AM | 89° E | 7:27 PM | 271° W | 44° | 12h 09m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:24 AM | 54° NE | 9:09 PM | 306° NW | 67° | 15h 45m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:02 AM | 89° E | 7:14 PM | 271° W | 44° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:54 AM | 124° SE | 4:32 PM | 236° WSW | 21° | 8h 39m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Waterfalls photograph best in soft, even light: overcast days, deep shade, or the hour after sunrise before direct sun hits the water. Bright sun on white water blows highlights and adds harsh contrast.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:19 AM | 7:53 AM | 8:41 AM | 4:08 PM | 4:56 PM | 5:29 PM | 9h 03m |
| February | 6:47 AM | 7:18 AM | 8:00 AM | 4:59 PM | 5:41 PM | 6:12 PM | 10h 23m |
| March | 6:58 AM | 7:28 AM | 8:07 AM | 6:41 PM | 7:20 PM | 7:50 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:57 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:21 PM | 8:01 PM | 8:32 PM | 13h 33m |
| May | 5:08 AM | 5:43 AM | 6:27 AM | 7:57 PM | 8:40 PM | 9:15 PM | 14h 57m |
| June | 4:45 AM | 5:24 AM | 6:10 AM | 8:21 PM | 9:07 PM | 9:46 PM | 15h 43m |
| July | 5:02 AM | 5:39 AM | 6:24 AM | 8:18 PM | 9:03 PM | 9:40 PM | 15h 24m |
| August | 5:42 AM | 6:15 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:43 PM | 8:25 PM | 8:57 PM | 14h 10m |
| September | 6:23 AM | 6:53 AM | 7:33 AM | 6:48 PM | 7:27 PM | 7:58 PM | 12h 34m |
| October | 7:02 AM | 7:32 AM | 8:12 AM | 5:49 PM | 6:30 PM | 7:00 PM | 10h 58m |
| November | 6:43 AM | 7:16 AM | 8:01 AM | 3:58 PM | 4:44 PM | 5:17 PM | 9h 29m |
| December | 7:16 AM | 7:50 AM | 8:40 AM | 3:40 PM | 4:31 PM | 5:05 PM | 8h 40m |
Local time (America/Los Angeles), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
From Fishhawk Falls, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 2.8 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 15° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 3 (rural sky), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -5° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| March | 5:30 AM – 5:40 AM | 0.2 | 11° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 3:21 AM – 4:31 AM | 1.2 | 14° | SSE → SSE |
| May | 1:24 AM – 3:24 AM | 2.0 | 15° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:50 PM – 2:40 AM | 2.8 | 15° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 11:30 PM – 1:20 AM | 1.8 | 15° | S → SSW |
| August | 10:22 PM – 11:22 PM | 1.0 | 14° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 9:10 PM – 9:20 PM | 0.2 | 11° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -3° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -20° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.5 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 5.5+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show July as the clearest month (about 39% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (80%). August is the warmest month and December the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 57 | 59 | 66 | 77 | 83 | 80 | 86 | 92 | 87 | 79 | 64 | 57 |
| Low °F | 19 | 20 | 27 | 31 | 34 | 42 | 47 | 48 | 39 | 31 | 24 | 16 |
| Precip. (in) | 10.3 | 7.2 | 7.9 | 5.1 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 2.6 | 6.1 | 10.5 | 11.4 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this waterfall
- Keep a microfiber cloth handy — spray drifts onto the lens, especially at the plunge pool.
- Bracket shutter speeds: 1/8 s, 1/2 s and 2 s give very different water textures and you can choose later.
- A 3-stop ND filter lets you use slow shutter speeds even when the light is bright.
- Shoot a vertical and a horizontal frame; tall falls often work better in portrait orientation.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Peak flow is usually in late spring; autumn adds color around the falls, and winter can bring ice formations at colder locations.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Circular polarizer, 3–6 stop ND filter, Lens cloth, Waterproof footwear. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Fishhawk Falls, closest first.
Mountain Peak
State Park
Waterfall
Ghost TownWaterfallWaterfall
WaterfallWaterfallFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Fishhawk Falls?
What time is golden hour at Fishhawk Falls?
Where does the sun rise and set at Fishhawk Falls?
Can you see the Milky Way from Fishhawk Falls?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Fishhawk Falls?
How far is Fishhawk Falls from Gearhart?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, USGS GNIS / GeoNames, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.