NEAR MCLEOD, MT - Cole Waltner has been coming to Natural Bridge and Falls for years, but he always finds a slightly new angle.
"This is probably my favorite shot so far today," Waltner said on a recent trip to the canyon bottom.
The Columbus photographer didn't have plans to drive to the popular recreation area earlier in the week, but when MTN asked him to join, he couldn't turn it down.
"You can get that one shot that nobody else has," Waltner said. "It's just a cool spot man."
Located just 30 minutes south of Big Timber, Natural Bridge is easily accessible for the whole family. The first overlook gazing down to the Boulder River below is just feet from the parking lot, and there are several spread around the fairly flat trail. But the real views are down in the canyon.
The name can confuse some. There used to be a naturally-formed bridge over the river, but it collapsed in 1988. Now, there is a man-made bridge to cross and get down to the bottom, as well as to several other trails that head into the Custer-Gallatin National Forest. The hike down is only about a half a mile, so it’s fairly simple for Cole to carry his gear. He never leaves home without it.
"You can only do so much from a trail, from a cell phone,," Waltner said. "If you want to get into some of this stuff, you're going to have to work for it. With this light setup, I can pretty much go wherever I want."
It’s not too difficult of a hike to make it down to the canyon bottom, and the payoff is incredible. The biggest feature is the river pouring down through a large hole in the rocks, collecting into a pool below before flowing off downstream. For photographers like Cole, it’s an absolute dream.
"It’s pretty cool to see it compared to up here at the overlook," he said. "It has a different feel."
You have to get pretty lucky to see the waterfall. In early spring when the river is at its highest, it will pour over the top of the rocks and into the pool below. Waltner has gotten some good shots of it but is always looking for more.
"I’ll get people asking me, ‘Do you have this shot?’ If I don’t, why not come out here and do it?" he said. "I may not get it, but at least I’m not home on the couch, right?”
Waltner’s day job - and sometimes night job - is as a corporal in the Stillwater County Sheriff’s Office. So every chance he gets, you’ll find him in places like this.
"Everybody's like, 'I’m here to disconnect,' and I think you can’t be more wrong in saying disconnect," he said. "We’re out here to reconnect."
You can find more info on the Natural Bridge and Falls recreation area here. You can find more of Cole Waltner's photos at the Chasing the Wild Outdoors Facebook page.
