Browne Falls
| Browne Falls | |
|---|---|
| Location | Doubtful Sound, New Zealand |
| Type | Cascade |
| Total height | 619 or 836 metres |
| Number of drops | 6 |
| World height ranking | 10[1] |
Browne Falls is a waterfall above Doubtful Sound, which is located in Fiordland National Park, New Zealand. In breathtaking scenery amidst temperate rain forest, the falls cascade down to the fiord near Hall Arm. Heights of 619 metres[2] and 836 metres[3] have been given for the falls. Their source is a tarn called Lake Browne (836 m above sea level) which when full, overflows down the side of the mountain face (similar to Sutherland's source). The stream makes 836 m height difference over 1,130 m horizontal difference, thus the mean gradient of stream is 42 degrees.[4] This comparatively low angle makes falls less impressive.
The falls are one of the two candidates for the title of New Zealand's highest waterfall. The other is sourced from a tarn behind Elizabeth Island which is also in Fiordland.
The falls are named after pioneering aerial photographer, Victor Carlisle Browne, who discovered Lake Browne and the associated falls on one of his flights over Fiordland in the 1940s.[5][6]
There are at least two other notable waterfalls falling to Doubtful Sound: Helena Waterfall and Lady Alice Falls.
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[edit] Natural history
There is a diversity of plant and birdlife in the vicinity and watershed of Browne Falls. Extensive stands of nothofagus dominated trees are present along with a wide variety of understory ferns and shrubs; examples of the forest floor vegetation include Crown Fern, Blechnum discolor.[7]
[edit] References
- Johnny Cheng. 2009. World's Highest Falls: Browne Falls
- C. Michael Hogan. 2009. Crown Fern: Blechnum discolor, Globaltwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg
- Bryan Swan & Dean Goss, 2004. Browne Falls. World Waterfall Database. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
[edit] Line notes
- ^ Ranking based on the 836 m height. World's Tallest Waterfalls, World Waterfall Database. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
- ^ Cheng, 2009.
- ^ Swan and Goss, 2004.
- ^ "Browne Falls". Wondermondo. http://www.wondermondo.com/Countries/Au/NZ/Southland/Browne.htm.
- ^ Air-photo pioneer dies, The Press, 18 September 1980, p. 11. Copy online: [1].
- ^ Crean, Mike (11 March 2011). "Memories emerge out of earthquake mess". The Press. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch-earthquake-2011/4755527/Memories-emerge-out-of-earthquake-mess. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
- ^ C. Michael Hogan. 2009
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 45°23′57.89″S 167°5′9.6″E / 45.3994139°S 167.086°E
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