Devil's Punch Bowl | |
---|---|
Location | Hamilton, Ontario |
Coordinates | 43°12′37″N79°45′21″W / 43.2104°N 79.7558°W |
Type | Ribbon waterfall |
Total height | 37 m (121 ft) |
Number of drops | |
Total width | 11 m (36 ft) |
Watercourse | Stoney Creek |
Devil's Punch Bowl is a 37-metre ribbon waterfall on the Niagara Escarpment, in the Stoney Creek community of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is in the Devil's Punchbowl Conservation Area [1] maintained by the Hamilton Conservation Authority, [2] and features an escarpment access trail with connections to a section of the Bruce Trail. Stoney Creek's Dofasco 2000 Trail is nearby. [3] The Punch Bowl is also known as Horseshoe Falls for the distinctive shape of the cliff-face, which somewhat resembles its much larger cousin in Niagara Falls.
In addition to the 800 km-long Bruce Trail, attractions close to the Falls include the historic Battlefield House Museum and Nash-Jackson House; on Lake Ontario, Fifty Point Conservation Area and Confederation Park; and Mohawk Sports Park and the Hamilton Museum of Steam and Technology in the city proper. A restaurant, a motel, a gas station, a convenience store and other retail stores are also nearby. [4]
Lower Punch Bowl Falls is a curtain waterfall located a few metres north of the Punch Bowl, spanning 7 metres in height and width.
The history of the Devil's Punch Bowl dates back to over 450 million years ago. It was formed throughout the years by many glacial waters; it withholds different layers of colourful stratified rock segments. The falls drops about 108.25 feet. Another monument that is considered part of the Devil's Punch Bowl is the ten-metre high cross that overlooks the Stoney Creek community and Hamilton Harbour. This cross was made on December 18, 1966, by William Sinclair (1925-1994). [5] He built the cross to bring light to the community. Originally the cross was only planned on being lit up during Christmas, and Easter for six weeks. However, with the help of the donations from the Knights of Columbus the cross lights up automatically every night.
The Devil's Punch Bowl originated 450 million years ago when materials that form the Niagara escarpment were originally deposited in an inland sea. Corals and other organisms that lived in the area became fossilized as the sea bottom deposits changed into rocks. [6]
The formation of the Devil's Punch Bowl occurred 1 million years ago after one of the four great ice ages. As the ice slabs that covered the area melted at the end of the ice age, high levels of water occurred. These streams of fast moving waters carved out the land and formed what would become the Devil's Punch Bowl. [6] Formation of the Devil's Punch Bowl has declined since its original formation; it often dries up or is only a trickle. However, the stream still picks up during rain and as snow is melting. The site also has two distinct waterfalls in the upper and lower regions. [7]
Today it has become a famous landmark amongst geologists worldwide because of its exposed rock strata. [6] The stratigraphy of the Punch Bowl has been studied by geologists, including McMaster University students. [7]
From the top of the escarpment a beautiful view of various locations can be seen such as; East Hamilton, Burlington, Stoney Creek and weather permitting, the Toronto skyline can become visible as well. [7]
The geology of the upper and lower falls was described in the popular Toronto blog "Hiking the GTA" in Dec. 2015. [8]
Devil's Punch Bowl has been used as a location for movies, television shows, and attractions. The 2006 film Silent Hill , opens with a young girl trying to jump off a cliff, which was the edge of the Devil's Punch Bowl overlooking the waterfall and rock bottom below. [9] In the film, The Big Hit (1998), scenes filmed in the area highlight the waterfall and the surrounding area. [10] In 1989 Super Dave Osborne performed a human yo-yo stunt at the Devil's Punch Bowl. [11]
The Bruce Trail is a hiking trail in southern Ontario, Canada, from the Niagara River to the tip of Tobermory, Ontario. The main trail is more than 890 km (550 mi) long and there are over 400 km (250 mi) of associated side trails. The trail mostly follows the edge of the Niagara Escarpment, one of the nineteen UNESCO World Biosphere Reserves in Canada. The land the trail traverses is owned by the Government of Ontario, local municipalities, local conservation authorities, private landowners, and the Bruce Trail Conservancy (BTC). The Bruce Trail is the oldest and longest marked hiking trail in Canada. Its name is linked to the Bruce Peninsula and Bruce County, through which the trail runs. The trail is named after the county, which was named after James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin who was the Governor General of the Province of Canada from 1847 to 1854.
The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in Canada and the United States that starts from the south shore of Lake Ontario westward, circumscribes the top of the Great Lakes Basin running from New York through Ontario, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The escarpment is the cliff over which the Niagara River plunges at Niagara Falls, for which it is named.
The Bighead River is a river in Grey County in southern Ontario, Canada, that flows from the Niagara Escarpment between the communities along Ontario Highway 10 of Arnott and Holland Centre in the township of Chatsworth to empty into Nottawasaga Bay, an inlet of Georgian Bay on Lake Huron, at Meaford.
Stoney Creek is a community in the city of Hamilton in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was officially a city from 1984 to 2001, when it was amalgamated with Hamilton, Glanbrook, Ancaster, Dundas and Flamborough to form Hamilton.
Devil's Punch Bowl may refer to:
King's Highway 20, commonly referred to as Highway 20, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. Presently, it is a short 1.9 km (1.2 mi) stub between Highway 58 and Niagara Regional Road 70 in the City of Thorold, but until 1997 it connected Hamilton to Niagara Falls, serving several towns atop the Niagara Escarpment en route.
Hilton Falls Conservation Area located in Campbellville, Ontario on the Niagara Escarpment is a conservation area known for its ten-metre waterfall, hiking trails and small glacial pothole. It constitutes 645 hectares and offers mountain biking as well as cross-country skiing. It is owned and operated by Conservation Halton. The Bruce Trail runs through the area.
The Hamilton Conservation Authority maintains the greenspace, trails, parks and some attractions in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Albion Falls is a 19 m (62 ft) classical/cascade waterfall flowing down the Niagara Escarpment in Red Hill Valley, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. With cascade falls the downpour is staggered into a series of steps causing water to "cascade". The top of the falls are located on Mountain Brow Blvd. The lower-end of the falls can be found at the south-end of King's Forest Park in lower Hamilton by following the Red Hill Creek south towards the Niagara Escarpment.
Jordan is a community located on the eastern edge of the Town of Lincoln, in the Niagara Region. Jordan is bordered by the Twenty Mile Creek and Vineland to the west, Lake Ontario to the north, St. Catharines to the east, and Pelham to the south. Lying roughly 100 km from Toronto and 65 km from Buffalo by road, Jordan is located along a major transportation corridor between Canada and the United States. In January 2014, Jordan was brought to international attention when Al-Qaeda-directed terrorists were arrested for plotting to derail a passenger train traveling from Toronto to New York on a rail-bridge crossing the Jordan Harbour.
Hamilton is located on the western end of the Niagara Peninsula and wraps around the westernmost part of the Lake Ontario. Most of the city including the downtown section lies along the south shore. Situated in the geographic centre of the Golden Horseshoe, it lies roughly midway between Toronto and Buffalo. The two major physical features are Hamilton Harbour marking the northern limit of the city and the Niagara Escarpment running through the middle of the city across its entire breadth, bisecting the city into 'upper' and 'lower' parts.
Centennial Parkway is an arterial road in southeastern Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is best known as the western terminus of the former King's Highway 20, now maintained by the City of Hamilton. It starts off as Upper Centennial Parkway, a mountain-access road in the City right before the Canadian Pacific Railway line at the backend of Battlefield Park, and is a two-way street throughout that extends north over the Queen Elizabeth Way and ends at Beach Boulevard/Van Wagners Beach Road in front of Confederation Park.
King's Forest Park is a park in Hamilton, Ontario. It was commissioned as part of the City Beautiful movement, spearheaded in Hamilton by the Hamilton Parks Board with the leadership of Thomas McQuesten.
The Eramosa Karst is a provincially significant Earth Science Area of Natural and Scientific Interest in Ontario, Canada, located in Stoney Creek, a constituent community of the City of Hamilton, and immediately south of the Niagara Escarpment.
Spencer Gorge/Webster's Falls Conservation Area is located on the Niagara Escarpment in Dundas, Ontario, a constituent community of Hamilton, Ontario, and is owned and operated by the Hamilton Conservation Authority. It has views over Hamilton and a two major waterfalls that are accessible via a system of trails. The natural features found in the area are considered to be provincially significant. A shuttle service runs from Christie Lake Conservation Area to Spencer Gorge/Webster Falls Conservation Area, for visitors to access this conservation area on weekends and holidays.
Twelve Mile Creek is a waterway located on the Niagara Peninsula in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada. Its headwaters are located in the town of Pelham, encompassing some of the most unspoiled and natural areas of Niagara area. The creek's lower reaches flow through urban areas of Thorold and St. Catharines and has been heavily altered by human activity for almost two centuries. The creek was first known as "Ashquasing" by the Mississaugas Indigenous people, the name meaning "that which lies at the end" in the Anishinaabe language.
Webster's Falls, noted for its panoramas, is a 22-metre-high (72 ft) classical curtain/ plunge waterfall found in the Spencer Gorge/Webster's Falls Conservation Area in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The water flows down Spencer Creek. In the past the falls have been known by various names such as Dr. Hamilton's Falls, Spencer Falls, Hart Falls, Fisher Falls and Flamborough Falls.
Borer's Falls is a 15-metre-high (49 ft) ribbon-style waterfall found in the Borer's Falls Conservation Area in Dundas, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Its source is Borer's Creek. A very picturesque waterfall featured on many Hamilton waterfall postcards over the years. Named after the Borer family who ran a sawmill for over a century. This mill was the lifeblood of the village of Rock Chapel. Also known as Rock Chapel Falls. The area is a hiker's haven and also an ice-climbing destination in the winter when the weather is cold enough to freeze the Falls.
Dundas Valley Conservation Area is located on the Niagara Escarpment in Dundas, Ontario, a constituent community of Hamilton, Ontario, and is owned and operated by the Hamilton Conservation Authority. Its 40-kilometre trail system provides a connection to the Bruce Trail. The area contains a trailhead of the Hamilton-Brantford-Cambridge Trails, Canada's first fully developed interurban multi-use trail system, which is a part of the Trans Canada Trail.
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