Friday, March 6, 2015

Weaver Falls

I was in Owen Sound the other day and after my cardiac rehab appointment, continued my quest for frozen waterfalls.  Weaver Falls is a small falls on a tiny creek that joins the Sydenham River flowing through Harrison Park, an old and popular park south of the downtown.  I've been visiting this park since shortly after I was born, as my grandparents lived in Owen Sound and an outing to the park was one of their favourites.

However, in all the years of going there, my parents never took me up the short trail up to Weaver Falls until last year I visited it myself.  It's only a short distance, but perhaps less well-known than all the other big waterfalls in the area.

A good deal of it is on an elevated boardwalk, making for easy walking and some interesting views in the narrow ravine.

You go round about the third curve, and there is the waterfall in the distance.  Unfortunately the last 100 yards is private land (and a very narrow, steep-sided valley), so the trail ends before you get to the falls, and the view is on a sharp angle.

On this trip I actually took my tripod, and this was only the 2nd of five falls with open flowing water.  In fact there didn't seem to be much ice at all, just lots of snow.

I played around with settings and a neutral-density filter quite a lot, trying to get a 'slower' picture of the falls, while my fingertips became completely frozen (it was about -20°C).  I couldn't even feel the camera buttons; I had to look at my fingers pressing them to know what I was doing!

To be honest, I'm disappointed in the results, though experimenting is how you learn.  There seemed to actually be some mist rising off the water, which suggests that it's warm enough not to freeze.  I believe that it emerges in a spring not far above the falls, but I need to check that out next summer.

At least it was a bright sunny day, and my fingers came back to life after 10 minutes in the warm car!  Two more much larger frozen waterfalls still to come!

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12 comments:

  1. Hi, I know you were disappointed --but I think it is pretty... Just seeing the stream as it cascades with all of that snow around is gorgeous. I've enjoyed seeing all of the winter waterfalls.
    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  2. Another set of lovely snowy winter scenes. Keep trying with the tripod and ND filters! I also find a circular polarizer very useful when shooting waterfalls.

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  3. It's really lovely, and the last one is the best of all, I think. I cannot imagine trying to do this in such frigid conditions! Hope all went well at the doctor's office. :-)

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  4. I love seeing the photos of the falls taken this time of year. A few years ago my husband discovered how many falls you have in your area and enjoyed visiting them. Maybe again this year.

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  5. That boardwalk certainly looks inviting. Especially in summertime.

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  6. It's very pretty in there and the falls are nice. I imagine the spring run off will make them fuller but perhaps access on foot might be difficult.

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  7. I think they all came out wonderful. So very pretty. Oh how I would love to walk there!!

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  8. You are one brave/crazed photographer to be out in the cold getting these really nice shots. Did a great job capturing the mist and what appears to be a little steam on one of the short drops.

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  9. Beautiful photos...such a beautiful place.

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  10. My goodness, these are fantastic winter shots! The snow is so pretty all stacked up.

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  11. That is very intimate and pretty. I like it! There is a Weaver Falls on the North Country Trail in Michigan's UP.

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