Fish Creek Falls is a
waterfall
A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf.
Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...
located about 5 miles to the east of
Steamboat Springs, Colorado
The City of Steamboat Springs is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Routt County, Colorado, United States. Steamboat Springs is the principal city of the Steamboat Springs, CO Micropolitan Sta ...
, in
Routt National Forest Routt may refer to:
;Places
In the United States:
* Routt, Louisville, Kentucky
*Routt County, Colorado
;People
*Joe Routt
*John Long Routt
*Stanford Routt
Stanford Bermond Routt (born July 26, 1983) is a former American football cornerback. Aft ...
. Fish Creek runs from several small lakes in the
Rabbit Ears Range
The Rabbit Ears Range is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in north-central Colorado in the United States. The range stretches east–west along the continental divide, forming the border between Grand and Jackson counties, and separating ...
of
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
.
In the summertime, the road to Fish Creek Falls often becomes clogged in mid-afternoon with tourists wanting to see the waterfall. It is possible to hike all the way to the terminus of the waterfall through giant boulders and rushing water. There are two hiking trails from the parking lot at the end of Fish Creek Fall Road. One is 1/4 of a mile () and goes through several
Aspen
Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the ''Populus'' genus.
Species
These species are called aspens:
*'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (China ...
groves with the occasional
Subalpine Fir. It ends at a viewing station where the entirety of the falls can be seen. The other trail goes straight down into the
U-shaped valley formed by
glaciers
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
. As it nears the bottom of the valley, one can hear the rushing sound of water over the fall and see beautiful Fish Creek. The trail continues on to
Upper Fish Creek Falls and then on to the
Wyoming Trail, a long trail running the northwestern mountains of Colorado to
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...
. The falls provide a great place for
ice climbing in the winter when 300+ inches of snow () fall on the mountains east of Steamboat Springs.
Image gallery
File:Footbridge at base of Fish Creek Falls.jpg, The footbridge at the base of Fish Creek Falls
File:Fish Creek Falls - view from trail above.jpg, Fish Creek Falls from above on a trail
File:Fish Creek Falls - Image of Bob Adams.jpg, Picture of benefactor Bob Adams near Fish Creek Falls
See also
*
Waterfalls of Colorado
This is a list of waterfalls in the U.S. State of Colorado.
__TOC__
Waterfalls of Colorado
The following list includes all 81 waterfalls in Colorado that have official names according to the United States Geological Survey. There are also numer ...
References
External links
*
Photo of the waterfall by pdsphil from Flickr
{{Authority control
Waterfalls of Colorado
Protected areas of Routt County, Colorado
Plunge waterfalls
Landforms of Routt County, Colorado
