Upper Mesa Falls | |
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Upper Mesa Falls in June, 2008 | |
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Location | Fremont County, Idaho |
Coordinates | 44°11′16″N 111°19′48″W / 44.18778°N 111.33000°W |
Type | Block |
Elevation | 5,600 feet (1,707 m) |
Total height | 114 feet (35 m) [1] |
Watercourse | Henrys Fork (Snake River) |
Upper Mesa Falls is a waterfall on the Henrys Fork in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Upstream from Lower Mesa Falls, it is roughly 16 miles (26 km) away from Ashton, Idaho. [2]
Upper Mesa Falls is roughly 114 feet (35 m) high and 200 feet (61 m) wide. [3]
Mesa Falls Tuff, which is the rock over which Upper Mesa Falls cascades, was formed 1.3 million years ago. A cycle of rhyolitic volcanism from the Henrys Fork caldera deposited a thick layer of rock and ash across the area. [4] This layer compressed and hardened over time.
Between 200,000 and 600,000 years ago, the river eroded a wide canyon which was subsequently partly filled with basalt lava flows. The Henrys Fork of the Snake River then carved the channel through the basalt; which is the inner canyon seen today.
Upper Mesa Falls | |
---|---|
Upper Mesa Falls in June, 2008 | |
| |
Location | Fremont County, Idaho |
Coordinates | 44°11′16″N 111°19′48″W / 44.18778°N 111.33000°W |
Type | Block |
Elevation | 5,600 feet (1,707 m) |
Total height | 114 feet (35 m) [1] |
Watercourse | Henrys Fork (Snake River) |
Upper Mesa Falls is a waterfall on the Henrys Fork in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Upstream from Lower Mesa Falls, it is roughly 16 miles (26 km) away from Ashton, Idaho. [2]
Upper Mesa Falls is roughly 114 feet (35 m) high and 200 feet (61 m) wide. [3]
Mesa Falls Tuff, which is the rock over which Upper Mesa Falls cascades, was formed 1.3 million years ago. A cycle of rhyolitic volcanism from the Henrys Fork caldera deposited a thick layer of rock and ash across the area. [4] This layer compressed and hardened over time.
Between 200,000 and 600,000 years ago, the river eroded a wide canyon which was subsequently partly filled with basalt lava flows. The Henrys Fork of the Snake River then carved the channel through the basalt; which is the inner canyon seen today.