I am fortunate to live within walking distance of a gorgeous and relatively unknown waterfall called Greenwood Falls in northeast Ohio. My wife and I visit often, especially within a few hours or so of a heavy rain. We like to see and hear it when it’s loud, frothy and extra angry. Such a rain event occurred last week and per usual, we walked down to take a look. This time I wondered, what would the creek flowing over the falls, Rocky Run Creek, a tributary of the Cuyahoga River, sound like captured with a pair of hydrophones? To find out, I came back the next morning when the water wasn’t flowing as nearly as fast. Taking a one-way ride down this cascading waterfall would be a life-altering experience to say the least. Listen below, with a pair of nice headphones or speakers, to the underwater sounds of Rocky Run Creek.
In the video above, I’m standing on Berea Sandstone. This is ancient rock that is over 370 million years old, laid down during the Late Devonian Period. This part of the world, northeast Ohio, was a shallow sea at the time. When you’re standing ankle-deep in cold water recording four different places for 10 minutes at a time, this is the kind of thing you think about.
Recording note: I’m using a pair of Aquarian H2A hydrophones feeding into a Sound Devices 702 recorder
I plopped my mics, sometimes spaced and other times right next to each other, into shallow pools, between nooks and crannies and behind tiny ledges. Each place presented me with a new sound, sounds which will eventually be included into what I believe will be an interesting and useful sound effects library. Stay tuned!
Visiting at Different Times of the Year
I have captured the falls during other times of the year as well. See the video below from a trip I made in January 2023.
Thanks for listening to the underwater sounds of Rocky Run Creek!