Indianapolis is relatively flat but did you know that you could drive about an hour out of town to visit a waterfall or two? We had a very cold January this year and with that there was talk that the waterfall at McCormick's Creek as well as lower Cataract Falls were frozen. All it took was seeing a few photos posted on social media the nature envy set in. I knew what I had to do. Go see them of course! Because it was so cold I would need a couple of things for the trip. It was freezing out so bundling up was a must. I set out with my ski pants, wool socks, waterproof hiking boots, hat, gloves. You know the deal.
Once dressed in full gear I was warm, toasty, and ready to go. In fact I couldn't stand to wait in the house for my other half so I waited outside in the bitter cold just as warm as could be. Also in tow was my camera and my hiking buddy (my husband). Must haves!
Our first stop was upper Cataract Falls. We pulled into the lot to find many other people there enjoying the sight. After all it isn't often it gets cold enough to see a frozen waterfall in Indiana. There was a designated lookout where we admired the falls. Despite the danger I noticed several thrill seekers walking on slick ledges. Luckily during our visit there were no icy incidents. Please always think about your safety when you are out enjoying nature, especially around ice. As you can see from the photo below the upper falls were partially frozen but water still flowed which made for a beautiful view.
Next we took a quick drive down to the lower falls. Part of the fun here was the creek that was frozen solid. Just a short hike from the parking lot, down a hill, you will arrive at the creek for a much better view. While the ledges over the waterfall were slick and dangerous the creek was shallow, frozen solid, and safe to walk on.
This was the first time that I had ever taken a step onto a frozen body of water. I have to say it was exhilarating and not something we could typically do. Sometimes when nature gives you lemons - in this case the lemon was the very very cold January - you make lemonade. I will admit before we got out I was starting to get a very bad case of cabin fever.
Last and final stop was McCormick's Creek State park. I have to say this is one of my favorite places. Usually we go here with our furry children for a hike, so I was particularly excited to see this waterfall in a totally new way. To get there you can park and take a very short walk down a hill to an icy staircase that will lead to the falls. Some brave souls did just that, however for someone who is slightly clumsy (ehhm me) going down stairs covered in ice was for sure a bad idea. After a short detour, for the second time in my life we walked on a frozen creek to see the falls. I really can't explain to you why this was so amazing and thrilling but it was. Every where I looked there was beauty. One of my favorite shots of the day was this creek that had a milky sheen to it. I think my heart skipped a beat when I saw it.
As we stood at the frozen falls I just looked around and took it all in. I knew that my photos weren't going to be the best at the falls because of the light. We were standing in a canyon with trees above so it was pretty dark as you can see in the photo on the left. For this particular area the shot would have come out better if we had been there at first light when the sun was shining through the trees above the falls. In this case the photo had some nice contrast so I turned this photo into a black and white edit that highlights the ice formations and snow on the hills and voila all was not lost. This is always something you can consider if you have nice contrast but you aren't completely happy with your light.
This last photo is just a reminder to stop and take a look around you when you are hiking and out in nature. You really never know what you will see. On this particular day in what we typically consider flat Indiana. I stopped to take a breath and take in the sights and I was delighted to see this tree that seemed to be glowing. It turns out, the Beech tree holds onto its leaves in the winter and I think they add some interesting color to photos when the light hits them just right.
By the way if you are out in the area near McCormicks creek and you either want to warm up "or cool down if it is Summer" there is a quaint little winery in Spencer called Owen Valley Winery. We did happen to stop in. I must say the staff was very friendly and quite liberal with their "tastes" Go check em out.