A Fall Hike to Poplar Stream Falls in Carrabassett Valley, Maine

This Halloween, we decided to get outdoors and go for a hike to Poplar Stream Falls in Carrabassett Valley, Maine. We have been to the area several times now and the last time we went to the waterfall, it had been frozen over. This time, the temperature was about 38 degrees Fahrenheit and mostly cloudy. We have been experiencing a lot of rain this fall and we were hoping the waterfall was flowing. This isn’t always the case in this area, because during the summer and early fall, many of the waterfalls will dwindle to a trickle of water. This is not so great for a planned photography session. We took a chance and it definitely paid off. We were able to get a few photographs and we even experienced a few snowflakes falling while we photographed the falls.

Poplar Stream Falls consists of two drops, on two different streams, that are combined under the same name. The upper formation is a 24-foot horsetail with a swimming pool below, located on Poplar Stream and located just off the trail. The lower drop is a 51-foot horsetail on South Brook and takes a little more effort to get to. We settled on photographing the first drop and maybe we will come back another time to photograph the lower drop.

In previous posts, I have mentioned wanting to acquire lens filters for improving my waterfall photography. Since then, I have purchased a Neewer 58MM Professional Lens Filter and Close-up Macro Accessory Kit. The goal when photographing waterfalls is to reduce the amount of polarized light or reflected light that reaches the sensor. In photographs, polarized light often makes things appear too shiny. The use of a polarizing filter can reduce this and helps saturate the colors of the landscape and sky. When photographing waterfalls, polarizing filters help cut through the reflections of the water, the surface of rocks and even the water itself. A polarizing filter also helps saturate the colors of the surrounding foliage.

This filter kit includes:

Ultraviolet UV, Circular Polarizer CPL and Fluorescent FLD

Macro Close Up Set (+1, +2, +4, +10)

Photo ND Neutral Density Set (ND2, ND4, ND8)

Carry Pouches

Tulip Flower Lens Hood

Collapsible Rubber Lens Hood

Center Pinch Lens Cap

Cap Keeper Leash

Microfiber Lens Cleaning Cloth

We drove up Carriage Road and parked at the entrance to the Poplar Hut access service road and then we walked down to the waterfall.

A view of Carriage Road.

The entrance to the Poplar Hut access service road.

The Poplar Hut access service road sign.

The gated part of the road.

A snow-covered bridge.

Leaves in the snow.

The entrance for the trail down to Poplar Steam Falls.

Once we got down to the falls, I found a stable rock to set the tripod upon. I took two photographs without the tripod or lens filters first. I then used the level 2 neutral density filter for a few photographs and then the polarizer filter.

(f/4.5, 1/50th sec., ISO 400)

(f/5, 1/40th sec., ISO 160)

Equipment and Steps:

1. Canon 55-250mm Lens and Canon 18-55mm Lens
2. Neutral Density (ND2) Filter and Circular Polarizer Filter
2. SLIK Pro 330EZ Tripod with 2-Way Pan/Tilt Head
3. SMDV Remote Shutter Release Cable
4. Canon Rebel T6i set on shutter priority
5. Used different small apertures
6. Adjusted shutter speed

(f/36, 2 sec., ISO 400)

(f/29, 2 sec., ISO 160)

(f/22, 1 sec., ISO 400)

(f/36, 1 sec., ISO 400)

(f/22, 1 sec., ISO 400)

Here are a few photographs I had taken from around the falls and from the top as well.

A young pine (Pinus) on the trail.

Lichen and Moss (Bryophyta) at the falls.

Lichen on the trail.

Looking up at the pines (Pinus).

The trail to get to the waterfall.

Looking down the falls.

The top of Poplar Stream Falls.

Here is a video of Poplar Stream Falls that I had taken as well:

A view of a snow-covered Bigelow Mountain from Carriage Road.

On the way home, we stopped by the Orange Cat Cafe in Kingfield. I was hoping for a cup of pumpkin spice coffee to keep up with the Halloween spirit, but they only had a caramel flavor. We got our coffees to go and enjoyed them in the car while soaking in the beautiful, but disappearing fall foliage of the Carrabassett River valley. Here are a few photographs from our visit.