Elowah Falls, McCord Falls, and Wahclella Falls in the Gorge

November 14, 2010 | Category: Oregon, Travel, Trees, Waterfalls

Matteo shooting at Elowah Falls

With all the rain that we had just gotten along the Oregon coast and wanting to stay around the Portland area before Matteo flew back out to New York, we decided to go into the Columbia River Gorge and check out some waterfalls. The wet and lush beauty of the gorge awaits!

The first falls we hiked in to visit was Elowah Falls. I really loved shooting this place with its moss-covered boulders in the water and the cool broom-like branch hanging down into the water on the right side of the frame.

Elowah Falls

This was one of those places where Matteo and I took turns shooting, not only because the room to shoot from was limited, but also because it took a combination of our gear to pull off the shots we wanted.

His camera also shoots video so I shot some video while we were here as well. Here’s the footage straight out of camera. (ack)

and here’s a shot of Matteo shooting from the above angle:

Matteo shooting at Elowah Falls

The next falls we went to was a sweet double waterfall named McCord Falls.

McCord Falls

Here as well there’s really just one main area to get this view. It’s a narrow piece of land alongside the trail that drops off way below into the water. To get this shot and get close enough to the edge so you can see over the trees and branches that obscure the bottom of the frame, you have to get right up to the edge of the cliff, standing on wet muddy dirt. Here as well you gotta be really careful where you stand, particularly when things get slippery.

Closeup of the top of McCord Falls

You can continue to hike in up-river from here and back behind it is some incredible landscapes… it’s one of those places that is surreal to walk through but oddly enough, doesn’t show up well when photographed. Go figure… Like many things, I guess it’s one of those things best experienced in person.

Leaving this area and driving to another trail, we hiked in to Wahclella Falls.

Wahclella Falls

This was a challenging waterfall to shoot because, like the other falls but perhaps even moreso, the spray of the waterfall crashing into the pool below combined with the wind blowing by creates this spray which keeps blowing onto your camera. We had to constantly clean off the front of our lens or else everything would get all smeary.

Misty smears covering my lens

If you’re up for the challenge, you can get closer to Wahclella Falls. There’s a log that lays down across the front of the falls, very much reminiscent of how Punchbowl Falls used to look.

A log lays in front of Wahclella Falls

Even getting to this location is a challenge because it requires ever so carefully making your way over slippery boulders and logs without falling or dropping anything. Matteo actually snapped a shot of me while I was here…

Ariel shooting Wahclella Falls (shot by Matteo)

and with that, after spending some time back in the gorge, we headed off to a coffee shop to trade photos we’d shot of one another, get his gear packed up and make sure he had everything, and eventually drop him off at the airport for his flight back home.

Another fun adventure complete! 🙂

3 Comments

Stacey
on December 7th, 2010
1
Amazingly beautiful! Its great to meet someone that loves being out in nature, and photography is always a wonderful way to capture your perspective on the moment! Keep enjoying the beauty that nature has to offer!
Michael Meeks
on December 30th, 2010
2
Hey…just wanted to stay nice blog. I stumbled across it awhile ago and have found myself coming back time and time again to see what you’ve been up to. Cheers!
Steve Sieren
on February 3rd, 2011
3
Seeing the photographer there really helps the veiwer with the perspective of being there. What a mesmerizing place Ariel!