Cataract Falls in winter is a sight to behold, if you can stand frozen fingers and toes. I started my short hike before sunrise in below zero degree weather to set up on the side opposite the parking lot. Needless to say I was the only person there, since it was one of the coldest days this winter at around – 7 degrees Fahrenheit.
There are upper falls and lower falls. Upper Cataract Falls has a sheer plunge of 20 feet; the lower falls, about a half mile downstream, has a fall of some 18 feet. (source)
A 140 foot Smith Type 3 covered bridge, Cataract Falls Covered Bridge, was built at the upper falls in 1876 and was open to traffic until 1988. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources restored and reopened the bridge in 1995. (source)
Cataract Falls is composed of two sets of falls that drop into Mill Creek creating a cascade of nearly 80 feet, making this waterfall Indiana’s largest waterfall (by volume).
Make sure to stay tuned for my Lower Falls post, which has a very surreal moonlit image. I used a long exposure to make the ice that was circling around at the bottom of the waterfall look like a dreamy spiral. Coming next!
