I have a thing for waterfalls and found out a week or two ago that there are some a lot closer to Leadville than I thought, so I spent some time today going to check them out.

The first waterfall I went to was Cataract Falls at Camp Hale.  Turns out, Camp Hale is WAY bigger than I thought- there are miles and miles of dirt Forest Service roads to get lost on back there, and I actually ended up finding a second waterfall, although it was just a miniature one.  While driving around Camp Hale, please watch out for the wildlife- I saw a couple of horses wandering around while I was there along with a flock (30+) of sheep.

Cataract Falls is a small waterfall right off of the Colorado Trail.  Because it is on the Colorado Trail, there are many distances one can hike to see it.  I choose the shortest.  From Leadville, I headed north on Hwy 24 towards Minturn and turned right at the sign for the campground at Camp Hale.  You make another right to enter Camp Hale (if you keep going straight you end up back on 24) and drive to the end of the road and make another right onto Forest Service 714.  From there drive about 3 miles and there is a parking lot on the right side of the road.  Park there and then walk across the road and follow the short trail to the waterfall, taking the left fork when you get to it.  You’ll soon reach two small red bridges and the waterfall.  It’s probably a half mile or less round-trip from the parking lot to the waterfall and back.

To get to the miniature waterfall, while you are on Forest Service 714 (before reaching the parking lot mentioned above- at probably mile 2.7), you’ll turn right onto a road (I’ve forgotten its’ number) with a sign stating it’s that way to the group campground and Hwy 24 is 3 miles that way.  The little falls will be 1/2 a mile past the group campground, on the left side.

Click here to visit the website for Camp Hale.

The Colorado Trail stretches 500 miles from Denver to Durango.  Click here to learn more.

Click here to learn more about another popular hiking trail, the Continental Divide Trail, which stretches 3,100 miles along the Continental Divide and was designated in 1978 by Congress.

The last waterfall of the day that I visited was Missouri Creek Falls.  To get to this waterfall, continue past Camp Hale and after a while there is a hairpin turn and you’re going to turn left onto Homestake Road.  If you make it to Red Cliff you’ve gone too far.  Once on Homestake Road, drive 8 miles before making a sharp right turn onto Forest Service Road 704 (there will be a sign for Missouri Lakes).  This turn is about 1/2 a mile after the Gold Park Campground.  Homestake Road is also home to wildlife- I saw a sign warning hunters to know what they were shooting / not shoot the moose.  Once on FS 704, proceed 2.2 miles to the trailhead for Missouri Lakes.  If that lot is full, across the road from it is the parking lot for Fancy Lake.  It also looked like you could continue through the Missouri Lakes parking lot and park farther up the road, making for a shorter hike- but I’m not positive.  From the first trailhead for Missouri Lakes, it’s less than a mile up to the waterfall- you’ll know you’re close when you come upon a lake on the left hand side.  The path to the waterfall isn’t super clear either- you have to rockhop over a creek and climb over some fallen trees, but I think it’s worth it because it was a nice waterfall.  Then turn around and come back the way you came, or you could also continue hiking up the trail.  The waterfall is in a wilderness area so overnight visitors need to sign the register and follow a few rules about where they set up camp.  Click here to read more information about the trail.

The fourth and final waterfall I visited today is another miniature one I stumbled across.  After I drove the 2.2 miles down to Homestake Road, I turned right to head to the reservoir (which you can’t get to because they are doing construction again this summer) and the waterfall / cascade is probably a mile, maybe a mile and a half, up the road and is on the right side and there’s a little pull-off across the road.

My final stop of the day, as I was headed back towards Hwy 24 on Homestake Road, was at a small pond with lily pads on it.

Until next time, keep safe and have fun!