Spokane, Washington, USA

A waterfalls on the Spokane River clearly demonstrated the potential for water power, at least enough to run a few mills. Later, that waterpower would be transformed into hydroelectricity on which the industrial base of the city would depend. The stately looking building by the bridge is the hydroelectric power station. [2019]

Spokane, Washington, USA

What physical feature defines your city? In Spokane, it is Spokane Falls. It was early recognized as a source of water power, a sawmill was established, and the city grew up as a service center for the ranches and mines in the surrounding region. The falls maintained their centrality in the urban settlement fabric: the city's downtown is adjacent. [2019]

Twin Falls, Idaho, USA

♫ These Are a Few of My Favorite Things ♫ ~ Water Features: Water, whether it takes the form of streams, lakes, seas, or waterfalls, is always photogenic. Shoshone Falls ranks as the Niagara of the West and is one of many along the Snake River. See the rainbow? [2020]

Gadsden, Alabama, USA

There is not much left of Noccalula Falls. Too dry this year. But, princess Noccalula remains vigilant, frozen in time at the moment before taking the leap that ended her life. She was not about to enter into an arranged marriage with someone she didn't love! The irony: The building perched above the falls is a wedding chapel. [2020]

Bryson City, North Carolina, USA

"Then something Tookish woke up inside him, and he wished to go and see the great [smoky] mountains, and hear the pine-trees and the waterfalls, and explore the caves, and wear a sword instead of a walking-stick." Whoever wrote that must have had two middle names or been to Toms Branch Falls. Let's all be a little Tookish! [2020]

Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA

The falls on the Big Sioux River provide Sioux Falls with the perfect excuse for a park: green in the summer and perfect for cycling, white in the winter and perfect for snowshoeing. The falls also provide the perfect excuse for a mill: Can you see the edge of the Queen Bee? [2007]

Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

Somewhere between the dandelions and the high rises is an international border: the frontier between Canada and the United States. Wouldn't it look so much better if there were a border wall snaking its way across the landscape? Maybe you could even build it in the middle of the river itself? [2013]

Lancaster, Ohio, USA

Every time you see a window, take a gander. It's an opportunity to re-frame the world. Waterfalls look completely different from afar. In this case, 'afar' is from the highest casements of Lancaster County's old Rock Mill. If you find a falls like this anywhere in America, look around. You will probably also find a mill (or the remains of one). [2017] 

Tbilisi, Georgia

In the ream of myth, the Caucasus were a place of punishment. Deities who rebelled or found themselves on the wrong side of the reigning pantheon were chained to the mountains. Could this chasm in Tbilisi be the site where Prometheus was bound by Zeus for stealing fire from the Oympians and giving it to humankind? [2015]

Whangarei, New Zealand

The year ahead is finally coming into focus, but a haze still envelopes everything but the very-near future. Who knows? Maybe the year will end in a haze, too. [2011]

Gauley Bridge, West Virginia, USA

Nothing beats an Appalachian spring. Its magnificence matches the splendor the world's finest cathedrals. Perhaps that is why this cascade has been anointed Cathedral Falls. It's one of the most scenic and most accessible in West Virginia: right off the Midland Trail. [2010]

Canillo, Andorra

It may look entirely natural, but brooks like this are simply part of the managed human landscape of Andorra. With 'Valleys of Andorra' as its quasi-official name, water features become an affirmation of national identity. Here is water at work cutting a valley into the Pyrenees' south flank. [2005]

Yosemite National Park, California, USA

The sky is where the grass should be; the grass is where the sky should be; and, Bridalveil Falls is defying gravity. What's going on here? [2005]

Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

People want to see the biggest waterfalls in North America, so the marketplace responds and development pressures put a squeeze on the natural landscape. In fact, tourism can destroy the very sites that travelers come to enjoy. What's your assessment of this tourist landscape? [2013]

Whangarei, New Zealand

Feel sorry for the folks who follow the paved road to Whangarei Falls. They will never meet the spirits of place who join you on the trail as you approach the falls on foot. Before you can see the falling water and its companion plunge pool, you can see and feel the mist. How gently it diffuses the sunshine. [2011]

Whangarei, New Zealand

Judging from the volume of flow on the Hatea River, the Northland is experiencing no drought this year. You can approach Whangarei Falls by following the river upstream through a thick rainforest, a long walk from the harbor. Or, you can drive to the hamlet of Tikipunga and find the parking lot at the top of the falls. [2011]

Kjosfossen, Norway

Can you find Kjosfossen in this picture? If you wonder what a glacial trough is, you are at the bottom of one, looking up at the heights from which you have just descended thanks to Norway's Flåmsbana, the rail connection from Myrdal to Flåm. The same feature looks quite different at different scales. [1984]

Kjosfossen, Norway

The most majestic rail trip in Norway takes 12 miles to descend 3000 ft to sea level. It's a switch-back line that gives you a close-up view of Kjosfossen. Foss means waterfall in Norwegian. Here water falls off the edge of a high-elevation hanging valley into the glacial trough that will carry it to the sea. [1984]