Tag Archives: falls

Second Go At Chelan Falls

A few years back, we made a trip across the North Cascades Highway and back across Stevens Pass.  One of the stops on that route was Chelan Falls.  I was hoping to get photos of the falls but they were hard to see and the sun was backlighting them anyway.  I still had a post about it but there wasn’t a huge amount to show for it.  Work recently took me to Chelan and I figured I would try finding another view on the falls after the conference day was done.

Looking at Google Maps, there was a road that ran alongside the gorge that the river was flowing through.  This road was confusingly named Gorge Road!  It was not a paved road but it was actually a very smooth dirt surface.  What was more intimidating about it was that it had some very steep drop-offs at the edge with a long drop below them!

I was able to see some of the river areas from the road but, being so far above it, meant things were rather distant.  I could also get an oblique view of the lower falls and the bridge across them.  It was a lovely sunny late afternoon so a nice time to be out and about with the camera.  It was also a bit warmer than on our side of the mountains so a good time to explore.

Rushing Water Under Tokul Trestle

Tokul Creek Gorge is the waterway that runs under the trestle at Tokul.  With the heavy rains that had been falling in advance of my visit, the creek was flowing heavily.  The trestle is a long way above the water so it was not easy to get a good look at it but I did try and get some shots.  I also had a go at getting some video.

Video of Snoqualmie Falls in Flood

More from my video editing catch up today.  I posted about the Snoqualmie Falls being in flood earlier this year after extensive rain.  I also shot some video that day.  It gives a better idea of how the spray from the falls gets driven up the hillside near the viewing area whereupon is dumps down on the visitors.  Here is the edited highlights.

 

Aira Force

C59F2393.jpgOne of the more frustrating elements of photography is trying to convey the sense of scale. In the past I have had the conversation with people visiting Yosemite for the first time that everything they have seen of it in pictures will not prepare them for the scale of the real thing. Wide angle lenses can bring in a lot of the scenery but they also compress it in a way that reduces the impact. This is a lot more of a problem when dealing with something impressive in a confined space. Aira Force is one such example. Located on the north side of Ullswater, Aira Force is a series of waterfalls of differing sizes. There is one particularly large fall that is in a narrow cleft in the rocks.

C59F2494.jpgA set of steep steps take you from the top of the rocks down to where the falls hit the water. Getting everything in a single shot of the falls needs a very wide angle on your lens. The downside of this is that it becomes harder to appreciate exactly what the shot is. You are looking down and the bottom becomes very small in the frame. It is hard to appreciate exactly how impressive the whole thing looks. If you get people in the shot that helps but they can be so small that they aren’t immediately obvious so the effect is diminished.

C59F2400.jpgThe falls themselves are great in person. You can walk down on one side, across the bottom and climb up the other side before crossing a bridge that runs over the top of the falls. The view looking down from the top is pretty cool too. You are just away from the edge so there is some detachment from the plunge the water takes. If you continue up the hill, there are further falls that the water undergoes as it comes down the hill. The way the water has cut through the rock results in some twists and turns on its way.

Plenty of people visit the main section of the fall but a lot less seemed bothered to go up the hill and see what else was there. They were the ones making a mistake because the whole thing was a really attractive sight to see.