Dillon Falls are

rapids Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade''. ...

on the

Deschutes River Deschutes River may refer to: *Deschutes River (Oregon) The Deschutes River in central Oregon is a major tributary of the Columbia River. The river provides much of the drainage on the eastern side of the Cascade Range in Oregon, gathering many ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

near Bend in the

Deschutes National Forest The Deschutes National Forest is a United States National Forest located in parts of Deschutes, Klamath, Lake, and Jefferson counties in central Oregon. It comprises along the east side of the Cascade Range. In 1908, the Deschutes National ...

. With a pitch of 76.5°, the falls are a significant obstacle to whitewater running and are rated Class 5. Unlike nearby

Benham Falls Benham Falls are rapids of the Deschutes River located between Sunriver and Bend, Oregon, United States. With a pitch of 22.5°, they are rated Class 5 for watercraft, and are the largest falls on the upper Deschutes. The falls were created b ...

, Dillon Falls are not widely documented because they are hard to see. Trails provide a somewhat better view of the falls. The falls were named after Leander Dillon, a nearby homesteader. He died in 1907. Dillon Falls starts off as a dramatic drop, then become a steep and violent class-5 rapids with a hazardously positioned tree in the center before ending as class 2 and 3. Experienced rafters can run the falls before taking out at Lava Island Falls downstream. The Falls have an additional danger— the area of the Deschutes River above is very calm, wide and open. The Falls are around a bend in the River and to the unknowledgeable, when one sees the warning signs in such a calm stream, there might be the temptation to ignore them. The slot of lava flows the falls cut through tend to limit the amount of sound that travels that direction, too, so the falls are not easily heard from the area of calm water.

References

* http://www.waterfallswest.com/waterfall.php?id=115 {{Protected Areas of Oregon Waterfalls of Oregon Waterfalls of Deschutes County, Oregon

See also

References