Hell Hole Waterfall

Hell Hole Waterfall Drops 600 feet!

Trying to capture Hell Hole waterfall has been a quest for several years.  I've driven out to Ivins, Utah during many a rainstorm to gaze at the cliffs, searching for a waterfall that magically appears in the right conditions.  I've been disappointed time and again.  Finally this year I went during a heavy storm and did the hike (even when there was no falling water) because more rain was predicted in the next few hours.  I figured that if there was no waterfall, then I'd just shoot the vegetation and rocks.  I've done that before as a consolation prize.  I found a wonderful redbud in bloom that way. 

As I was deep in the canyon, focusing on a small pool of water while trying to photograph a reflection in it, I heard rushing water . . . like a shower.  I stopped, looked around and then looked UP to see this waterfall beginning to drop.  It grew heavier and heavier as I changed lenses and began to shoot this ephemeral phenomenon.  I shot several photos, trying to somehow fit the whole height of the waterfall into one frame.  The cliffs here are 600 feet high and I was just a few feet away.  I climbed the opposite canyon scree and found a higher viewpoint where I successfully took this photograph. 

The waterfall lasted about 10 minutes, maybe 15 at most.  Then the show was over.  Mother Nature put on the whole display just for me, all alone in the canyon.