The eight-mile-long Fall River, formed by the joining of Cold and Hot Brook streams above Hot Springs, winds through Fall River Canyon and drops about 50 feet over a sandstone outcropping to form Fall River Falls. In 1907, Hot Springs built a low dam above the falls to direct the 89°F water through a 4,700-foot flume made of native wood staves banded with iron rods and wrapped wire, and older residents recalled walking the flume as children to a point below the falls. After leaving the flume, the water dropped 115 feet to a small hydroelectric plant that supplied part of the city's electrical power until the late 1960s, and the white powerhouse and part of the staircase remain visible in the canyon. Beneath the scenic setting, the waters below the falls have been the site of multiple drownings, including a tragic triple drowning over two days in August 1995, and a later temporary diversion of the falls revealed a small cave beneath that creates a whirlpool effect capable of trapping even strong swimmers.

Photo: Unknown

Photo: Barry Swackhamer

Photo: Anonymous

Maverick Junction, South Dakota · USA