There’s just something about big, deep voids that strike fear in the deepest reaches of the human brain. Black holes and whirlpools are great examples of this, as is the Glory Hole Spillway in Napa, California. A massive hole in Lake Berryessa helps regulate an overflow of water at the lake’s dam, and when a recent spat of wet weather caused the spillway to overflow for the first time, one intrepid drone pilot decided to see just how close he could get. The answer: too close.
Starting at an altitude of 1,000 feet, drone pilot David B navigated his drone slowly downwards, perfectly in line with the Glory Hole. Everything was going smoothly, and you can even see a different drone checking out the hole prior to David B’s attempt, but then things got a little dicey. “When I lowered the drone into the Glory Hole it became unstable and almost crashed into the side,” he says. Luckily, he was able to make a last second ascent before the drone actually came in contact with the rushing water.
The video is awesome, but it’s not the only glimpse of the watery abyss that was filmed that day. Local news station Lake Berryessa News was able to capture its own look at the spillway in action, and got mighty close to the danger zone as well. I might have gone with a slightly different choice of musical accompaniment — maybe Waterfalls by TLC — but the video is mighty impressive nonetheless.
