In the 1800s, Witches Gulch was difficult to reach because centuries of fallen trees and other debris made passage through the gorge extremely hard. While searching for new places to photograph, H.H. Bennett followed an opening from the main river channel into the rock gorge, heard what seemed to be a waterfall, and waded, crawled, and swam in until he found it. Unable at first to get over or around the falls, he returned in winter when the gorge was frozen, skated in, cut steps into the ice of the frozen waterfall, climbed over it, and reached the head of the ravine. Struck by the dark and mystical rock formations there, Bennett gave the place the name Witches Gulch. He later returned with Captain Bell of the Dell Queen, and in the spring of 1875 Bennett, his brother, and the captain floated logs and boards into the gorge and built a walkway so tourists could travel through it. Witches Gulch has remained a regular stop on boat tours since then, and in 1877 the first food stand was built to serve shore-landing visitors. Bennett also helped make the Dells famous by exploring with his camera at a time when most photographers stayed in their studios, selling photographs and stereo views, promoting the Dells as a tourist destination, and advancing an image of nature as a playground to be enjoyed rather than feared.