Frozen Waterfall Throwback

December 22, 2014 in 24mm, Sony NEX 7, Waterfalls, Snow

Now that we've officially moved into winter here in the pacific Northwest, I thought it appropriate to post something a little more snow and winter themed.

This image was made on February 7th this year when the kids and I went out for an epic day in the ice covered Columbia River Gorge. We hiked into Elowah falls that day and stopped at Horsetail and Multnomah on the way home. The hike was awesome, with nearly 2 feet of powder covering the trail. This is the thickest I've seen the ice, but I've heard about it getting even more frozen when the cold lasts longer. We've been out and seen some mild freezing over the last couple months, but I'm hoping for a good cold stretch in the new year.

Multnomah Falls can feel a bit pedestrian because of the large crowds and paved trail, but lest you forget about the power of nature, take a look at the bridge closely. It was shut down for a few months earlier this year when a falling rock took out a large chunk of it. It's fixed now, but I love that this image has that detail.

I also have an 12x18" print of this one I've been needing to get up on a wall.

Ending the Fall

November 17, 2014 in 24mm, Waterfalls, Sony A7

This is another of my favorite waterfalls to visit when the temperatures plummet. Horsetail falls ends in a beautiful, clear pool right next to the Historic Columbia river Highway just a mile or so East of Multnomah falls. There's a heavy mist most of the year here, but when things are this cold, it slows down a bit and only flares up every minute or so.

If it's icy on the road, be careful in the parking lot as there's a little bit of a grade and all the 2wd cars have a rough time getting back out.

Slowly Thawing

November 15, 2014 in 24mm, Sony A7, Waterfalls

Elowah falls is a go-to location whenever the temperature drops and ice is certain in the Portland area.

Roof Rack Icicles

November 13, 2014 in 24mm, Sony A7

As If They Were Frozen By The Moon

February 10, 2014 in 24mm, Night Photography

All day long, there was a constant crackling of ice falling falling from the trees and hitting the frozen crust over the snow on the ground. It finally slowed down around 8 or 9 pm as the temperatures dropped below feezing again. I happened to walk outside for one last glimpse of the ice before heading to bed, but I ended up grabbing my tripod and staying out there for another 30 minutes or so.

It was hard to get an image that was reasonably sharp as the tiniest breeze kept gently swaying the branches ruining otherwise good versions. I finally settled on a pretty high ISO setting so I could keep the shutter speed as short as possible.

When all is said and done, this is how it felt.

Frozen Water

February 08, 2014 in 24mm, GoPro, Snow, iPhone

I've been waiting for a few days of freezing temperatures for a couple months now so the waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge would freeze. I've always loved photos of them, but hadn't seen them myself or had the chance to make photos.

Luckily there was a long enough break in the wind and snow for the kids and I to drive out there and check out a few. Our first stop was Elowah falls which we just visited a few weeks ago in much warmer temperatures.

The hike in was a little more work than the kids remembered, but I kept assuring them it would be worth it and it was. Emily called us about half-way in and told us that the weather reporters were warning of an approaching storm that was going to arrive earlier than we had expected. That gave us some motivation to push a little harder.

On the way back to Portland we stopped and checked out Horsetail falls and Multnomah falls.