dry falls interpretive center

The views into Dry Falls are spectacular at any season, but it's the interpretive center that really bridges the gap between seeing the canyon, and understanding how it was created. The rangers are knowledgeable, and the interpretive displays are very well done.

Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park is a 4,027-acre camping park with 73,640 feet of freshwater shoreline at the foot of Dry Falls. This is a lovely park you must visit! Dry Falls is one of the great geological wonders of North America. It was carved by Ice Age floods that long ago disappeared, and the former waterfall is now a stark cliff, 400 feet high and 3.5 miles wide! In its heyday, the waterfall was four times the size of Niagara Falls. Today, it overlooks a desert oasis filled with lakes and abundant wildlife. The Visitor's Center is situated on a wonderful overlook point, right off Highway 17. This is a fabulous place to visit, even more so if you have an appreciation for a geological marvel that - -at its zenith -- was five times larger than Niagara Falls!

The two rangers in the interpretive center made our day. They were quite knowledgeable in their answers and explanations.

Interpretive center was excellent, with very helpful staff. The displays were imaginative. I can't imagine what it would have been like with the water filling the coulee and the falls. Spectacular!

This is where 20 miles of eroding a miles-wide swath of granite stopped after Ice Age Floods. Impressive now and even more when imagining a 40' wall of water pouring over it. Don't skip the movie. With excellent picnic facilities and concessions.

Very interesting area with wonderful panoramic views. We were traveling with 37 photo enthusiasts so this was a great break from the bus with photo ops besides. The Visitor Center had an interpretive center and lots of nice souvenirs at good prices (best coffee mug prices I've seen!). The great view can be seen from ground level or from the overlook upstairs. Definitely worth the stop.

Free. Great movie explaining the geology and formation of the area. Nice staff. Food truck on site (looked good, but we didn't end up eating there).

We stayed two nights at Sun Lakes/ Dry Falls State Park. Very much a kid friendly scene with lots to do and lots of action - like being in a neighborhood. Not a place for those looking for peace and quiet (they should instead go to Steamboat Rock State Park a bit further north). The Interpretive Center is very close to the Sun Lakes/Dry Falls campground and is very well done. The geology lesson is fascinating even for kids and the views are outstanding. You can stand there and imagine the water creating this place eons ago. Well worth a visit and even going out of your way to see it. Not to mention that the landscape from Dry Falls to Coulee Dam would be a National Park in most countries. There is a pretty good set of stairs to get up to the center but there is an elevator . May want to call to make sure it is working if an elevator is essential to your group.

Since I was 12 and visited Dry Falls and Sun Lakes with my family, I've returned many times to show this amazing site to others. Call it the Grand Canyon of Washington State, if you want, but it was formed by the catastrophic flooding of the last melting ice age rather than mainly a river. No matter where you're from or where you've been, this is a must-see, one-of-a-kind Wonder of the World generally unknown by the populace and unvisited as it is thought of as being "in the middle of nowhere." It is near Coulee City and somewhat close to Grand Coulee Dam. The Visitor Center adds much to your understanding by photos and displays and Melissa, the friendly park ranger, shared there's a brand-new 12 minute film that shows and tells in an interesting way how this seemingly endless Dry Falls once flowed with thundering volumes of water speeding 65 mph over a precipice twice as high and ten times larger than Niagra. Melissa also mentioned told how recent thunderstorms brought out the reds and greens on Dry Falls' walls. Have your camera ready but there's nothing quite like the panoramic naked eye. After looking at Dry Falls from the top and in the Visitor Center, we purchased a Discovery Pass so we could drive on the bottom of Dry Falls in the Sun Lakes State Park. Seeing the massive walls towering above us, serene lakes, foliage and crinkly cracked boulders gave us an up-close perspective of this wide canyon floor. Even saw a white-tailed deer eating tree leaves. Experience this geological Wonder of the World from top to bottom and you'll surely encourage others to see the place where the water flow over the falls was ten times greater than combining all the world's major rivers. Amazing!

Well presented, short video and exquisite vistas. The birding is incredible, Notable for nesting phalaropes, unique orchids, marmots and amazing geological history complete with major floods and volcanic eruptions.

We visited Dry Falls and to our surprise there is now a food kiosk next to the interpretive centre. They serve really good items for a quick snack or a nice meal. We had the Marinated Steak and an extra order of fries. It was nicely prepared and very tasty.We can highly recommend it.

We heard from a friend to stop and see this but I wanted to explore a little first. I went in the back road thru to the lake itself, it was very impressive going back to the lake and all the close-up to the canyons we had to drive threw. After getting back to the lake and only seeing a path thru the Cattails we decided to drive up to the center and view it from there. Very beautiful lake and I could see the road that I drove into the lake. Both drives were worth the trips. There is a lot to see here and the surrounding country.

I've lived in the Northwest for 30 years and no one ever told me about Dry Falls. To think I almost missed this!Below Grand Coulee Dam in the area known as the Grand Coulee, this was once the largest waterfall on earth. Now it's dry but still amazing. The interpretive center is rather minimalist but worth a stop. There is good information about Dry Falls there and fabulous views. Granted this is not an easy place to get to, but if you're within 50 or 100 miles (Wenatchee, the Dam, Lake Chelan, etc.) it is worth the detour to spend an afternoon in this breathtaking place and in the Grand Coulee wash.

Great information, beautiful view but the center needs some updating. Very vintage! A must stop for the area.

The Dry Falls are an amazing sight to see. But the visitor center adds little to the experience.The visitor center is a single room with drawing and photos posted on dividing walls that you can skim through if you know nothing about the Missoula Flood. It is about a twenty minute stop and you can be done.They also have a film that runs continuously in a little room that is available for purchase if you would like.I was really disappointed that at the entrance to the parking lot there is a sign "Discovery Pass Required" There is nothing but a low rent exhibit and a view from the parking lot of the Dry Falls and they exact a price from you to see it. You could drive to any one of the turn outs for free and see the same gorgeous view for free.They have a few picnic tables here but again, the site is not spectacular and for free you can find better picnic areas.