What It Takes: Waterfalls

As you can see, a lot of the waterfalls are not named.  This is because you sometimes have to hike up five miles of mountainous terrain to find many of them.  The last time I went out hunting falls, I ended up hiking over twelve miles in two days.  This would usually not be such a big deal; however, you are carrying multiple cameras, lenses and a sturdy tripod.  Many days you plan your shoots from directions given to you by locals just to spend your entire day hiking and never reach your destination. Many of the falls don’t even have trails to them and you have to listen for the water to guide you in.   

When you arrive at a waterfall you will usually spend up to one hour preparing for the shoot.  This includes cleaning up any trash, moving stumps & logs and if necessary climbing into the falls to remove limbs and debris that have washed down from previous storms.  What I would give to be able to pack a chainsaw with me! Many falls are non-existent because of low precipitation. This too is extremely frustrating. The hardest part of shooting waterfalls is getting there. Some of the locations are so steep that you have to use your only free hand (the one without the tripod) to grab trees, branches and rocks to slow your descent. There have been many times that on the way down my only thought was how will I ever make it out.  Although I have been injured numerous times hunting these falls, I would not trade the experience for anything in the world. I have been very lucky not to have broken any bones in these remote areas because even with the best of cell phones you will not get a signal.