Horseshoe Falls (British Columbia)
Encyclopedia
Horseshoe Falls is one of seven waterfalls on the Murtle River
west of Murtle Lake
in Wells Gray Provincial Park
, east-central British Columbia, Canada. Horseshoe Falls has two steps, 100 m (328 ft) apart; the upper drop is 6 m (20 ft) high and the lower and much wider drop is 10 m (33 ft) high.
The waterfall was discovered by Joseph Hunter
, a surveyor working for the future Canadian Pacific Railway, on May 26, 1874. Hunter did not name the falls, but he did name the Murtle River and Murtle Lake for his birthplace in Scotland, Milton of Murtle, near Aberdeen. Horseshoe Falls was named in 1914 by land surveyor Robert Henry Lee who mapped homesteaders' lots along the south side of the Murtle River. The river is slow-moving between Horseshoe Falls and Meadow Falls, 4 km (2.5 mi) upstream, and Lee marked a "raft crossing" on his map.
Horseshoe Falls can be reached by a 13.5 km (8.4 mi) hiking trail from Pyramid Campground on Clearwater Valley Road. The trail passes volcanic Pyramid Mountain
and Majerus Falls
, and ends at Horseshoe Falls.
Murtle River
The Murtle River is a river in east-central British Columbia, Canada. It rises from a large unnamed glacier in the Cariboo Mountains at an elevation of and flows southwest for to the head of gigantic Murtle Lake. The river also drains Murtle Lake then flows southwest for into the Clearwater...
west of Murtle Lake
Murtle Lake
Murtle Lake is a lava dammed lake located in Wells Gray Provincial Park, east-central British Columbia, Canada. It is fed primarily by the Murtle River which rises from a large unnamed glacier in the Cariboo Mountains at an elevation of and flows southwest for to the lake. The Murtle River also...
in Wells Gray Provincial Park
Wells Gray Provincial Park
Wells Gray Provincial Park is a large wilderness park located in east-central British Columbia, Canada. The park protects most of the southern, and highest, regions of the Cariboo Mountains and covers 5,250 square kilometres...
, east-central British Columbia, Canada. Horseshoe Falls has two steps, 100 m (328 ft) apart; the upper drop is 6 m (20 ft) high and the lower and much wider drop is 10 m (33 ft) high.
The waterfall was discovered by Joseph Hunter
Joseph Hunter (Canadian politician)
Joseph Hunter was a Scottish-born surveyor, civil engineer and political figure in British Columbia. He represented Cariboo from 1871 to 1875 and from 1900 to 1904 and Comox from 1890 to 1898 in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.He was born in Aberdeen and educated there, concluding his...
, a surveyor working for the future Canadian Pacific Railway, on May 26, 1874. Hunter did not name the falls, but he did name the Murtle River and Murtle Lake for his birthplace in Scotland, Milton of Murtle, near Aberdeen. Horseshoe Falls was named in 1914 by land surveyor Robert Henry Lee who mapped homesteaders' lots along the south side of the Murtle River. The river is slow-moving between Horseshoe Falls and Meadow Falls, 4 km (2.5 mi) upstream, and Lee marked a "raft crossing" on his map.
Horseshoe Falls can be reached by a 13.5 km (8.4 mi) hiking trail from Pyramid Campground on Clearwater Valley Road. The trail passes volcanic Pyramid Mountain
Pyramid Mountain (volcano)
Pyramid Mountain is a subglacial mound located on the Murtle Plateau in Wells Gray Provincial Park, east-central British Columbia, Canada.-Formation:...
and Majerus Falls
Majerus Falls
Majerus Falls is one of seven waterfalls on the Murtle River west of Murtle Lake in Wells Gray Provincial Park, east-central British Columbia, Canada.Majerus Falls is high and wide, a similar width to Dawson Falls downstream....
, and ends at Horseshoe Falls.