Unnamed Waterfall

This is one of a number of waterfalls along the unnamed branch of Coal Creek which originates in Devil Lake north of the Mountain Loop Highway near Big Four. The falls drop in three steps over a linear run of about 110 feet for a total of 55 vertical feet. The upper tier tumbles 20 feet into a pool nestled between small cliffs on either side of the stream. The outlet of the pool then tumbles 12 feet, but offset from the upper tier by about 20 feet. The final drop then drops nearly vertically for another 23 feet as the direction of the creek shifts back to the same centerline as the upper tier, so the falls take on a distinct stepping appearance when viewed from downstream. The stream producing this waterfall drains from an area approximately seven-tenths of a square mile in size. The stream is shown on maps as originating from Devils Lake, but as the lake is only about 4.3 acres in size, it isn't thought to be a significant contributor to the volume of the stream, and instead most of the flow is dictated by snow melt or precipitation in the basin. Because of this, once the winter snow pack has melted off the volume of the stream will be reduced considerably, potentially to just a trickle in the late summer months.