Y is for ...Young's River Falls

Something I should know about as I grew up near to this lovely spot.

Young's River Falls is  located about eleven miles from Astoria, Oregon.

The falls are about 60 feet high and fall over a basalt ledge into a deep pool.

The point where the rise and fall of the  tide ends is only a short

distance below the falls. Spruces, Firs, and Alders march up the steep

slopes, while willows and elderberry bushes grow closer to the river.

The water is cold....always...and there are only a few places to swim.

Jumping off the rocks on the side of the falls is not recommended, although

it is practiced. Daredevils have been injured here.

Members of the Lewis and Clark expedition visited  the falls.

An early mill was located close to the falls. A Ninja Turtles movie 

used it as a location and a  Budweiser Beer commercial was shot here.

Leading all those Clydesdale horses down the steep trail to the falls must 

have taken some careful handling!

A railroad used to run close to the top of the falls and once some empty cars

derailed and fell over the side and down into the water. Rusting metal might

 still lurk in the bottom of the deep pool. Eels sometimes come here to spawn, as

well as salmon. The eels cling to the rocks of the falls, perhaps remembering some

 ancient time when they could swim farther up the river. On rare hot days, crowds  of 

people try to occupy the limited space in the canyon below the falls. Many times, a 

visitor  will have the falls all to themselves.The area is somewhat isolated although it is 

located  on a county road. The best time to enjoy a swim is around noon, as it takes a 

while for the sun to find its way into the narrow canyon, and too quickly the 

shadows fall, leaving you wondering why you wanted to go swimming in that

 cold water. There used to be a rope swing, but that is gone. Storms of recent

years have changed the canyon, scouring away some areas and dumping rocks in 

others. The trail down to the base of the falls has been improved by local high school 

students who worked on it for their senior project. Hopefully Mother Nature won't 

decide  to wash away any of the steep slopes any time soon.

 

 

The falls on a beautiful summer afternoon. Usually it's grey and raining!

http://www.imagekind.com/Youngs-River-Falls--art?IMID=9d03a000-9e93-4f16-9ed0-05fcfabb9012