Eagle Creek to Tunnel Falls

People on either side of the man-made tunnel in Tunnel Falls

A few days ago I did the longest hike I'd ever undertaken in the Columbia River Gorge: the 12-mile round trip Eagle Creek trail leading to 120-foot Tunnel Falls. This is one waterfall I didn't expect to be able to see simply because the hike is too long for me to be able to convince someone to go, but Jay, the guitarist from our band One Moment, was willing to take me there and brave the distance. Here's some photo documentation of the all-day escapade!

Eagle Creek at a bridge about 3.7 miles along the trail

Eagle Creek about 5 miles in. The creek is almost always seen from high above, from anywhere between 100 and 150 feet. The telephoto lens came in handy for this shot.

Tunnel Falls, one of the only shots my non-wide-angle lens could get of the whole thing. It both free falls and slides along a slanting cliff, looking almost like a water slide. You can see where the trail continues in the indentation in the rocks on the right.

Tunnel Falls as seen from the trail, flower level.

Tunnel Falls from the base again, one of the only shots form this angle I got without having any mist on my lens.

Just beyond Tunnel Falls is this waterfall, named "Twisty Falls" on Wikipedia and "Unnamed Falls" by Jay, who I trust more on this issue (the source Wikipedia cites admits that "Twisty Falls" is the unoficial name of the waterfall). Whatever its name, this waterfall actually has a second tier below this one of about a hundred feet, which could be seen from a slightly scary part of the trail where there was no clear or safe view for photos.

Above Unnamed Falls. If it had been darker, I could have made a spiral at the base of the cascade. It's a new photo technique I've been working on. Almost there!

On the way back I noticed Tenas Falls from the trail, a double falls from a side creek (also unofficially named). It's 25 feet tall.

The Tenas Falls shots came out wonderfully!

The Eagle Creek trail leads past Punchbowl Falls, a very famous and picturesque 30-footer. I didn't get to the angle that's so well-known, though. I've already seen it from that perspective.

Hike To The Secret Waterfall And The Not-So-Secret-Waterfall

 A few days ago I had the chance to go to the Columbia River Gorge again, this time with Courtney and her old friend Rebeca, and see some sites I'd never seen before. First was a hidden 80-foot waterfall that required scrambling up the the river to get to. Well worth it!

A view from the trail while it was still a trail

Getting ready to cross the river

A segment of the beautiful river

A little rest as they admire an albino moth

Intrepid explorers!

Another shot from the trail

We had all this to ourselves

Picnic by the falls. We stayed there for about an hour and no one disturbed our peace.

The lush environment of our hidden waterfall

Rebecca, Courtney, and I

This is probably my favorite shot of the day.

Strategizing on the way back

Accomplishment

Fording the river again

Mountain goats

Next was the famous Oneonta Falls, only accessible in the summer because the Oneonta Gorge is so narrow that you have to ford the river to get through and see the 100-foot waterfall. The water was still quite cold, though barely swimmable, and I managed to backstroke into the white of the falls and look up. It was terrifying, like the water was going to pound me to the rocks below until I drowned. I took some shots with Courtney's waterproof camera and bolted out of there.

Oneonta Falls

Looking up into the falls

Courtney is cold.

Courtney is still cold.

Approaching

Backstroking

A Few Photo Shoots

Recently I took a trip to the Portland International Rose Test Garden. Apparently because of Portland's unique and rainy climate, we can grow and breed all sorts of roses here - hence the city's nickname "the city of roses." Even though I am not usually a fan of macro (very close-up) photography and I don't have a macro lens, I think I got some decent shots of the flowers.

Then one day the neighbors set up a ramp for the kids to ride their bikes over, and I practiced some sports photography:

Car commercial

Now that's a score I like to see!

Also I took a trip to the Columbia River Gorge to revisit a couple of waterfalls I couldn't get enough of the first time: Bridal Veil Falls, Munra Falls, and Wahclella Falls. Wahclella is stunning. There are many waterfalls out there that are awesome because it's hard to believe that they're real, but with Wahclella Falls what makes it so amazing is how real it is. It doesn't have majesty or pomp. It's stark reality makes it unbelievably beautiful.

Wahclella Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Munra Falls in the distance

Multnomah Falls. I was noticing how different the textures of the falling water between the upper and lower sections of the falls.

Wahclella Falls reflecting on the water.