Hidden deep in the woods just 60 miles from Portland, Valhalla Canyon is a stunning, emerald-green gorge that was discovered as recently as 2010. This secret canyon is pristinely beautiful, yet almost totally inaccessible. A few years ago, a team of experts went in and explored the canyon along with a film crew. What they found there — and the footage they took — is absolutely jaw-dropping.
Hidden deep in the Mount Jefferson Wilderness, Valhalla Canyon is a stunning place that’s full of incredible waterfalls, moss-covered boulders, and tall, narrow walls.
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Until recently, it had never even existed on a map.
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In 2010, a forest service employee named Mike Malone spotted this amazing canyon from while flying a helicopter towards a wildfire in the Mt Jefferson Wilderness. Until that point, it was unnamed, unmapped, and altogether undocumented.
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After that initially sighting, it took him four years to find the mysterious slot canyon at ground level. Alongside his son and an OPB film crew, he made it to the canyon once and for all. The video footage they took along the way is absolutely spectacular.
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Navigating the canyon was no easy feat. In fact, most experienced explorers wouldn’t be able to do it. But what they found when they entered the canyon was extraordinarily beautiful.
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Although the vast majority of us will never make it to Valhalla Canyon for ourselves (it’s incredibly dangerous to navigate), we can still experience its enchanting, untouched beauty, captured by the OPB film crew.
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Check out this amazing video poem composed with rare Valhalla Canyon footage:
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This gorgeous video poem was created by UncagetheSoul in collaboration with OPB Oregon Field Guide. Check out the full Valhalla Documentary, created by OPB, here.
Find out about more amazing hidden gems in Oregon that anyone can visit here.
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