Two weeks of unusually heavy rain and mild temperatures erased much of the early snowpack on Mount Hood in mid-December of 2026, turning mountain streams and the rivers they feed into torrents. This was the scene in the sagebrush country east of the mountain at White River Falls, just one day after flood levels had peaked at more than ten feet on the river gauge. When this photo was taken the following morning, flood levels had already dropped to seven feet. This was still more than enough to create a thundering spectacle that easily exceed the high-water mark for the entire previous winter.
Morning sun rays added to the drama, lighting a heavy plume of mist that was billowing from the falls and rolling downstream into the narrow gorge, below. Blue skies and dissipating clouds overhead reveal the rain shadow effect of the Cascades that creates this desert landscape.
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Image Description: a wide, thundering waterfall swollen by storm runoff cascades over a sheer basalt cliff under blue skies with scattered clouds. The roaring water has tan and gold tints from river silt stirred up by the flooding. A grove of Cottonwood trees frames the falls, standing leafless and stark in winter. A pair of big Ponderosa pine grow along the White River just above the falls. A flat, rocky mesa rises in the distance, marking this as classic Oregon desert country.
Photo © WyEast Images (2026)
WyEast Images 