Fenner's Falls

Reaching the side of the waterfall would be close to impossible this time of year. The narrow path down is hard enough to follow in the summer; covered in snow and ice would ensure a hard fall to the rocks of Eagle River below. When I reached the top of the deep gorge I looked around, verified that I was above the waterfall, and saved the spot to my GPS. I'd use this as a reference and make a mental note to push it a few yards east to account for the river.

The river was swollen today, far larger than I remembered it being back in July. We slowly climbed up the side of the lower drop, a conglomerate dome that water fanned over, in order to catch a glimpse of the upper half. The view wasn't that good. Fenner's Falls is much more impressive on the east bank, though crossing here on the crest was out of the question; the strong flow would easily sweep me from the slick conglomerate rock and down into the pool.

The waterfall has roughly three drops that we had to climb down, as both banks steepened to dramatic walls here. The first was a narrow chute, followed by a deep pool that had a tire swing dangling above it; the second, a tumbled clash of volcanic plunges, was difficult with a puppy, and the last, a slide over conglomerate rock, would have been almost impossible to climb over if the entire face was wet. Once we reached the base I noticed a trail leading up the roadside bank. There was an easy way to these falls after all.