Washington's Beacon Rock, the core of an ancient volcano, is a prominent state park about 7 miles west of the Bridge of the Gods. It offers hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding trails, picnicking, camping and river access.
The ascent up 848ft Beacon Rock is a 0.9-mile trail with 52 switchbacks; views are grand. For a longer hike, climb 2445ft Hamilton Mountain (nearly 8 miles round-trip; about 4½ hours); going just 1.25 miles leads to Hardy and Rodney Falls.
Beacon Rock is one of the few rock-climbing sites in the gorge. The majority of climbs are trad and multipitch, and for experienced climbers only. To protect raptor nests, climbing is not allowed from February to mid-July.
