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| coordinates = {{coord|44|11|16|N|111|19|48|W}}
| coordinates = {{coord|44|11|16|N|111|19|48|W}}
| elevation = {{convert|5600|ft|m|0}}
| elevation = {{convert|5600|ft|m|0}}
| type = Cascade [[waterfall]]
| type = Block
| height = {{convert|114|ft|m|0}}<ref>{{cite web
| height = {{convert|114|ft|m|0}}<ref>{{cite web
| title = Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho
| title = Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho

Revision as of 02:44, 23 April 2010

Upper Mesa Falls
Upper Mesa Falls in June, 2008
Map
LocationFremont County, Idaho
Coordinates44°11′16″N 111°19′48″W / 44.18778°N 111.33000°W / 44.18778; -111.33000
TypeBlock
Elevation5,600 feet (1,707 m)
Total height114 feet (35 m)[1]
WatercourseHenrys 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 away from Ashton, Idaho.

Upper Mesa Falls is roughly 114 feet high and 300 feet wide. [2]

Formation

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.[3] 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.

References

  1. ^ "Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho". Public Lands Information Center. 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
  2. ^ Mesa Falls Near Ashton Idaho
  3. ^ Shallat, Todd A (1994). Snake: the plain and its people. Boise, ID: Boise State University. p. 53. ISBN 9780932129123. OCLC 31689273. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)