The Rhine Falls: Urban Waterfall
The Rhine Falls in Switzerland are a series of three falls, the Zürcher, Schaffhauser, and Mühle falls. It is the largest waterfall in western Europe coming in at 25 meters tall and 150 meters wide. The falls are in the relatively urban area of Schaffhausen and have been well known in Europe for many years.
They are fairly low in height compared to other waterfalls. Its three sections are divided by islets of sharp, jagged limestone rock that is piled up against the waterfall, old remnants of the waterfall cliff that eroded and collapsed, and somehow has defied the powers of the rushing water to tumble them downstream. On either side of the River Rhine is a thick forested area of local trees and shrubs and beyond that the city. Schaffhausen is typical of many European cities with narrow alleys and old stucco and brick architecture. On a small cliff just south of the falls sits the old castle Schloss Laufen. It makes a quaint area to visit and get a look at a well-known waterfall without having to travel to really exotic locales.
Its waterfalls were created about 15,000 years ago during the Würm ice age when glaciers began to retreat and left behind a landscape filled with grooves and other scars from the heavy ice. It’s thought that the glaciers forced the River Rhine to change course several times over its history, carving out new riverbeds in the limestone rock surrounding the area. Several old fossil riverbeds have been found filled in over the years with sediment. Of course the limestone bed and cliffs that the waterfalls flow over now is hard and difficult to erode but eventually the cliffside will disintegrate and collapse once more effectively pushing the waterfall backwards another few feet.
One might think the Rhine Falls is measly in comparison to the other waterfalls that are famous throughout the world, but seen in person they inspire a healthy respect. The water spills over the edge of the cliff at a rate of 750,000 liters per second. This is about a fifth of the volume of water that flows over the Niagara Falls, yet is still more than enough to discourage visitors from leaning to far over the railing to get their photographs of the Rhine.
In addition to being well-known the falls were part of an old important trade route. Part of the River Rhine flows from Lake Constance, Bodenensee in the local language. There used to be a trade route used heavily from the 13th to the 19th centuries to transport salt from Lake Constance to the area of Basel.
The Rhine Falls are very busy with over 50,000 tourists visiting on a daily basis to get the best camera angle and souvenirs. Though this also makes it one of the easier falls to get to, being just outside of a small city. Do be prepared to jostle with the tourists or take a ride on one of the daredevil boats that scurry around the base of the falls for a better picture.