Frozen Falls

As I've posted many, many times before, Oregon's Columbia River Gorge is home to a great number of lovely waterfalls.  They are wonderful to visit any time of the year (and I do!) but when a winter cold snap hits, these frozen cascades are especially stunning.

Latourell Falls

Many times the waterfalls freeze during winter storms, which also bring terribly icy roads that make visiting difficult, if not risky.  In mid-February, a gusty east wind began to blow through the gorge.  East winds in winter are particularly brutal, as they carry frigid temperatures from the colder interior of Oregon to the temperate west side.  But one positive result - these chilly gales caused the waterfalls in the gorge to freeze but didn't affect the roads.  Taking advantage of the good driving conditions, I packed up my camera one blustery morning and headed over to check things out.

Latourell Fall's icy base area

The first cascade on my winter tour was the always scenic Latourell Falls.  Access to the base area's splash pool required a quarter mile walk down a paved path.  With the high winds blowing the waterfall's spray everywhere, the last hundred feet of this path had a thick layer of ice covering everything.  Luckily, from past experience, I'd brought traction for my feet in the form of a pair of microspikes.  These devices acted as chains on my shoes, keeping me safe from slips and falls.

Frozen creek below the falls

Most people visiting the falls wore street shoes and wisely stopped short of the icy path.  But my microspikes enabled me to walk down to Latourell Fall's base area for some great shots of the ice-covered splash pool.  I encountered one man without any type of traction who had gingerly slipped down to this same area.  (I have no idea how he managed to get there without falling and injuring himself!)  However, when the time came for the man to walk back uphill, the path was so slippery he couldn't ascend.  Lucky for him, the trail was a loop, so he was able to return to the parking lot via a longer route in the opposite direction.

Ice coats everything in the splash pool

Although the water cascading down Latourell Falls wasn't freezing, the spray blowing off it was.  It coated everything around it in a thick layer of ice.  Some of the features created by these wind-borne water droplets were quite beautiful.

But the spray caused problems for me.  It formed a fine layer of frost on my camera lens that required continuous wiping to keep clear.  Although I was wearing gloves, my hands became quite cold.  Standing in the strong wind that was blowing icy water all around, it didn't take long before my entire body was chilled.  Time to head back to the car and warm up!

Mother Nature's ice sculptures over Wahkeena Creek

After sitting in my car with heater running for a bit (and firing up my heated seats - the best!) I headed over to visit Sheppard's Dell Falls and then Bridal Veil Falls.  Although I took photos at both places, they didn't have the interesting ice features that Latourell did.  After warming up a bit after each waterfall, I then headed down the road to Wahkeena Falls.  And here I struck gold!

More fancy icicles

To reach Wahkeena Falls required a half mile uphill hike.  However, I first found icy beauty right next to the parking area.  Wahkeena Creek flowed downhill past the roadway and the bushes dangling above the water sported numerous delicate icicles.  This fun photography session delayed my trip to the waterfall by several minutes.

Large icy branch at the base of Wahkeena Falls

But the best was yet to come!  Finally reaching Wahkeena Fall's base area I was blown away by the amazing ice sculptures surrounding this cascade.

Icicles coat the waterfall's sides

Huge icicles had formed on a large branch sticking out of the splash pool.  Rounded ice features littered the walls surrounding the creek.  And many more icicles dangled from the cliffs on either side of Wahkeena Falls.  The entire area around this waterfall was coated in a thick layer of white ice.  It was a thing of beauty to behold!

The entire area is coated in white!

Although I'd planned to end my trip at Multnomah Falls, the grand dame of the gorge waterfalls, by the time I had finished photographing Wahkeena Falls, my body was chilled to the bone.  Time to head home and warm up for good.  

Another view of Wahkeena Falls

The following day the entire Portland metro area was hit with a snowstorm.  Although only receiving an inch or two of snow, it was enough to mess up the roads everywhere.  In the gorge, a large amount of accidents on the freeway near Multnomah Falls ended up stranding over 100 vehicles.  I was doubly glad I'd ventured out to see the frozen waterfalls before the storm hit.

Slippery paths, icy spray coating camera lenses, cold hands and feet, and frigid wind chilling a body to the bone.  These are things we photographers endure to capture these stunning creations of Mother Nature.  Hope you enjoyed the photos!