Horsetail Falls (Oregon) Explained

Horsetail Falls
Location:Columbia River Gorge
Type:Horsetail
Map:Oregon
Coordinates:45.5896°N -122.0687°W
Elevation:224feet
Height:176feet
Average Width:15feet
Number Drops:1
Watercourse:Horsetail Creek

Horsetail Falls (or Horse Tail Falls) is a waterfall located on Horsetail Creek along the Columbia River Gorge in Multnomah County, in the U.S. state of Oregon.[1] The falls drop over a cut over the columnar basalt cliff within the Oneonta Gorge.[2] It is one of the waterfalls along the Columbia River Highway's waterfall corridor.[3]

Access

The waterfall is easily accessed, in contrast to its near neighbor Oneonta Falls, as it is right next to the Historic Columbia River Highway. The shape of the falls and the rounded rockface over which it flows cause it to resemble a horse's tail.

There are actually two waterfalls along the creek. The upper falls, called Upper Horsetail Falls or Ponytail Falls, can be accessed from a footpath.

Horsetail Falls Bridge

The Historic Columbia River Highway passes across Horsetail Falls on a bridge, the Horsetail Falls Bridge, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing structure.[4] It is a 60feet reinforced concrete slab span. The bridge was built in 1914 and is unique in its design in which it has been strengthened in 1998 from its original constitution by fibre-reinforced plastic.[5] [6]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Horsetail Falls . World of Waterfalls . 14 September 2022 .
  2. Williams . I. A. . 1991 . The Columbia River Gorge; its geologic history interpreted from the Columbia River Highway . Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries Bulletin . 2 . 3 . 130.
  3. Web site: Horsetail Falls & Trail (#438) . USDA Forest Service . 14 September 2022 .
  4. Web site: [{{NRHP url|id=83004168}} National Historic Landmark Nomination: Columbia River Highway / Historic Columbia River Highway ]. . Hadlow . Robert W. . February 4, 2000 . January 12, 2022. With
  5. Seim . J. . September 1999 . Composite strengthening and instrumentation of the Horsetail Falls Bridge with long gauge length fiber Bragg grating strain sensors . 13th International Conference on Optical Fiber Sensors . 3746 . 172–175 . SPIE.
  6. Soltesz . S. . 2002 . Strain monitoring for horsetail falls and sylvan bridges (No. FHWA-OR-DF-02-17) . Oregon Department of Transportation.