I visited this spectacular place on the Maumelle River after recent rains (Dec ’11).  The USGS reported the peak flow on this date to be 1,200 CFS, which is about 539,000 gallons/minute.   On the day before the area received about 1.2 inches of rain.    The typical streamflow here is more like 100 CFS or about 1/10th or less of the flow on this incredible day.

I’m not a geologist but I think this type of falls is called a “block falls”; a very wide waterfall where a river drops across a rock ledge.  ”Block falls” are typically wider than tall.  In fact, there is a rock formation that runs across the river at this point and makes a nice bluff on the eastern side of the river. At this point in history this wonderful place is in the middle of timberland, just on the eastern edge of the Ouachita National Forest.  I’m not sure whether it’s within the ONF or not.  In any case, it’s spectacular, beautiful, highly scenic and deserves preservation.   I hope in the future this area will be recognized for its scenic beauty and will be protected long-term.

Geek info:  Filmed with a Panasonic GH2 Micro 4/3 camera (44Mbit patch) using an Olympus 9-18mm wide angle lens and Panasonic 100-300mm telephoto lens.  On the Oly 9-18mm I also used a Heliopan 52mm variable ND filter (wonderful quality, no color shift or effect on sharpness).  Actually, a 67mm variable ND would have been very useful for the telephoto shots; it was a very bright day and I had to stop down maximally to get acceptable light levels.  The Heliopan is said to be one of the best; other variable ND filters have color shift issues and some may affect sharpness.  I also recorded sound using a Sony PCM-D50, but ended up not using it for the video.  Need to work on getting this rig to be easier to use in remote places.

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