Multnomah Falls

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One of the best parts about our trip to Portland was the hike to the top of Multnomah Falls. I thought the legend of the falls was beautiful, and remembered hearing about it somewhere. On our drive home I realized that it was in the book The Shack which I reviewed awhile ago. Such a beautiful legend, and a beautiful place. I highly recommend it if you ever visit Portland.

There was a terrible sickness that threatened lives of the Multnomah people. An old medicine man revealed that the sickness had been foretold but that it would pass if a maiden descendant of a tribal chief would throw herself from a high cliff above the big river and onto the rocks below. The chief was not willing to sacrifice any of the princesses, so he elected to allow the sickness to run it’s course.

When the Chief’s daughter saw that the sickness had affected her lover, she went up to the top of the cliff and threw herself to the rocks below. Upon her death, the sickness immediately began to leave the affected people.

Now, when the breeze blows through the water, a silvery stream separates from the upper falls. The misty stream fashions a form of the maiden, a token of the “Great Spirit’s” acceptance of her sacrifice.