Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis, MN freezes every winter creating a kaleidoscope of colors and light when viewed from behind. Locals and outside travelers flock to this frozen waterfall, and some take the risk to hike up the slippery sloped banks to see the icy view from behind. I hadn’t stopped by the frozen waterfall since January of 2017 when I took a photo of my friend Dan that went viral on the internet. But on a warm and sunny late winter morning in early March, I returned once again.
Normally I would get there at sunrise to have the place to myself, but I got a late start to the morning and arrived around 11am. The sun was intense and I knew there were only a few days remaining before the falls thawed out once more and began flowing. There were a lot of families near in the area and a few people were coming and going up the trail that leads to behind the falls. I took my time as it was very slick and muddy, and then spent the next two hours behind Minnehaha Falls as the late morning sun blasted through the ice creating a myriad of colors and texture. It was also very icy!
With the record breaking precipitation we had over the winter, the floor of the falls was high with layered ice which took away head space. I was careful not to bang my head and damage the surrounding rock and crawled my way behind. It was cool and calming and I set up my tripod in the middle area that is more open and took photos when others were not around. It was a great day to explore the falls once again, and just three days later heavy rains came and the falls began flowing into spring. Minnehaha Falls is such a beautiful park in Minneapolis because it is so connected to nature. Every time I go there it has a different look and feeling, and I’m always happy to see it and feel it. This time was definitely not an exception.
