Nancy and I were inspired to write a book about Colorado waterfalls in 1988, when we returned home from a visit to Basaseachic Falls in Mexico. It occurred to us that we shouldnapostrophet have to travel 24 hours by jet, bus and rented car just to see a waterfall.
In four years, we located more than 270 falls and visited over 200. We present here our top waterfall for Colorado--Ouzel Falls, in Rocky Mountain National Park--followed by information about our website, which details more than 40 of the stateapostrophes prettiest and most impressive falls.
The great majority of Coloradoapostrophes falls are on public land, mostly in one of the stateapostrophes national forests. Coloradoapostrophes residents are fortunate in that nearly half of their state--arguably, the prettier half--is publicly owned and available for the enjoyment, responsibly, of every citizen.
Ouzel Falls, Rocky Mountain National Park
Perched high on a slope that is a mix of burned standing timber and new growth, Ouzel Falls is justifiably included in our list of Coloradoapostrophes top ten waterfalls. Itapostrophes over 40 feet high and has several wonderful viewing points both above the falls and downstream from the bridge at the trail. Water surges through a deep cut in the rock and shoots over the edge in a straight leap to a beautiful plunge pool. Lively cascades stretch under a bridge below the falls. A big log crosses right through the mist above the main pool, offering a tempting but perilous perch for the would-be aerialist (particularly dizzying when one attempts to turn around on the log). Even using a safer approach, one can either bathe in the mist or stand at the edge of the main leap.
The nearest campsites to Ouzel Falls are the North St. Vrain sites, nearly two miles away. To get to Ouzel Falls, use the Wild Basin entrance to the Park, 2 miles north of Allens Park on Highway 7. Look for a sign directing you to the Wild Basin Ranger station and Copeland Lake. Turn left off the highway. Drive 2 miles to the parking lot at the end of the road for the Ouzel Falls trail. About .04 mile up the trail, youapostrophell pass Copeland Falls, the only falls actually on the North St. Vrain River. Plenty of water flows over the falls, itapostrophes wonderfully noisy, and there are plenty of places for kids to explore safely. Itapostrophes a pleasant spot for a rest in the shade or a picnic.
Expect to be accompanied on your stroll by many happy people, some of whom may walk with you to the next falls, 1.4 miles further along the trail. Youapostrophell pass Calypso Cascades, almost 600 feet long, by my rough trigonometric calculation, in a vertical drop of about 200apostrophe. Ouzel Falls is another 1.4 mi. up the trail. For a direct link to the Ouzel Falls picture, go to http://users.aol.com/marcconly/ouzel.html. Link to the detailed description of Ouzel on the Rocky Mountain National Park drainage page at http://users.aol.com/marcconly/rmnp.html#ouzel.
Marc Conly is a Colorado native with a degree in fine art. He lives and works as a graphic designer/webmaster in Denver. Nancy Miscia Conly is a potter and professional photographer. Prints of the photos displayed on the Waterfalls of Colorado site are for sale. To read about The Best of Coloradoapostrophes Waterfalls, visit http://users.aol.com/marcconly/waterfalls.html. This site is organized around the stateapostrophes natural geographic divisions, its river drainages. You can access the Conlysapostrophe information in two ways: Go to the <A HREF=" http://users.aol.com/marcconly/topten.html">Top Ten Colorado Waterfalls</A> page to see photos of the falls they rate as the best in the state, or navigate the site from the <A HREF=" http://users.aol.com/marcconly/wfareas.html">Waterfalls by Drainage</A> page to get detailed access information and descriptions of all of Coloradoapostrophes best waterfalls.