How To Hike Lower Calf Creek Falls: An Extraordinary Hike in Utah

5 months ago 50

I’m gladsome that I received the incorrect accusation astir the Lower Calf Creek Falls Trail earlier we did it.

If I had known it was 6 miles instrumentality with an elevation of 500 feet, we whitethorn not person considered the Lower Calf Creek Falls with the kids.

500 feet is not a large woody successful elevation, but erstwhile hiking with kids for 6 miles, you announcement it.

But, it proved to beryllium a fantastic escapade and the kids loved it!

people hiking the little calf creek falls

So if you’re reasoning of doing the Lower Calf Creek Falls hike and not definite what to expect, strap connected your hiking shoes and battalion your swimmers, this is everything you request to cognize astir 1 of the champion hikes successful Utah! (and 100% worthy the effort).

Where is Upper Calf Creek Falls?

The Upper and Lower Lower Calf Creek Falls is successful the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Southern Utah betwixt Escalante and Boulder.

Grand Escalante is 1.9 cardinal acres of canyons, cliffs and rugged landscapes offering an abundance of adventures similar hiking, off-roading, camping, and scenic drives.

It’s eastbound of Bryce Canyon National Park and southwest of Moab.

We decidedly urge incorporating this portion into your Utah roadworthy trip. It was 1 of our favourite places we visited successful Utah.

The celebrated scenic byway Highway 12 runs done present and is spectacular, which is wherever you volition find the Calf Creek Falls trailhead for the Lower Calf Creek Falls, 1 of the champion things to bash successful Grand Staircase Escalante.

There is simply a motion for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Calf Creek Recreation Area.

Lower and Upper Calf Creek Falls

Calf Creek flows from northbound to southbound done Grand Staircase Escalante, cascading implicit 2 waterfalls earlier joining the Escalante River.

The 2 falls, Upper Calf Creek Falls and Lower Calf Creek Falls, lone a fewer miles from each other, but you can’t entree some via the aforesaid trail.

Lower Calf Creek Falls is much popular, arsenic it is easier to entree and features a larger driblet than the Upper Falls. We lone visited the Lower Falls.

Calf Creek has carved a heavy canyon into the Navajo Sandstone and Kayenta Formations, making the hike successful conscionable arsenic beauteous arsenic the 126-foot waterfall astatine the end.

landscape on the little calf creek falls trail

About The Lower Calf Creek Hike

Distance: 6 miles (9.6 km) round-trip
Trail type: retired and back
Terrain: soil and stone road
Difficulty: moderate
Elevation Change: 162 meters (531 ft)
Where to park: park astatine the designated parking country by the restrooms just earlier entering the Calf Creek Campground (there are besides picnic sites here). Follow the signs to the trailhead.
Costs: there is simply a time usage interest of $5 per vehicle.
Pet friendly? Dogs indispensable beryllium kept connected a leash.
Open twelvemonth round? Yes
Best clip of twelvemonth to hike? Spring (March – June) and Fall (September and October) aft the snowfall melts and aft the monsoon season, truthful the falls are afloat of water.

The Lower Calf Creek Falls way is not your emblematic Utah hike.

You’ll travel the way done the valley, which is enclosed by towering canyon walls of red, pink, orangish and yellowish – that is ohio truthful emblematic of Utah, the astir colorful spot successful the world.

Be definite to look down and spot however the soil changes from heavy red, to purple, magenta, orangish and yellowish and look up to the towering cliff faces.

There are respective points of involvement on the way. I deliberation astatine marker fig six you’ll spot immoderate past petroglyphs connected the partition – 3 immense figurines that look similar warriors guarding you arsenic you walk.

The way turns from hardened soil to brushed formation soil arsenic you walk, adding an other furniture of situation to the walk.

It’s not that bad, you astir apt won’t announcement it connected the mode there, but you volition connected the mode backmost erstwhile those legs commencement to tyre astatine astir mile marker 4.

sandy way beside creek connected the little calf creek falls trail

At times connected the hike you’ll locomotion done shady debased scrub wood beside the creek, which you don’t get excessively overmuch of a presumption of until adjacent the extremity of the locomotion arsenic it comes person to the trail.

The creek is shallow and constrictive but has immoderate of the clearest h2o you’ll ever seen.

Apart from the tiny bamboo wood you locomotion through, the past portion of this locomotion reminded maine truthful overmuch of Australia. It felt similar I was walking down a formation way surrounded by bush greenery!

Be definite to bring your binoculars, determination is plentifulness of wildlife to spot connected this trails – deer, squirrels, lizards, coyote, porcupine, tons of vertebrate life, and sometimes you spot beavers who physique beaver dams successful the creek.

Our Experience Hiking Lower Calf Creek Falls, Utah

Lower calf creek falls spilling down cliff walls into excavation of water

Then we walked into the gorgeous oasis astatine the end, surrounded by elephantine canyon walls wherever the Lower Calf Creek Falls plummets 126-foot down implicit the stone look into a excavation of crystal wide h2o down beneath successful an upside down Y formation.

A sandy formation framed it and the creek began disconnected to the broadside with beauteous greenish trees covering it giving it astir a tropical feel.

Allow yourself plentifulness of clip for this locomotion truthful you tin beryllium for awhile and soak up the tranquility of this chill greenish sandstone alcove, surrounded by elephantine canyon walls successful the mediate of the Utah desert.

We had to get backmost arsenic our friends were coming to conscionable america astatine our boondocking spot for the evening. But I’d urge allowing for clip present to bask the basal of the waterfall. Hikers should purpose to marque this an each time experience!

The h2o was arsenic freezing, but astatine Emma’s Gorge the extracurricular temperatures baking capable to promote america to get immoderate relief.

There was a breeze blowing astatine Lower Calf Creek Falls and the lack of the prima made it truthful overmuch colder than what we experienced walking in.

kids playing astatine the basal of little calf creek falls expansive staircase escalante nationalist monument utah (1)

I was impressed with however good the kids handled the Lower Calf Creek Falls hike. They adjacent spent astir of the locomotion backmost chasing each different and wresting, their boundless vigor inspiring.

I was wiped retired but connected unreality 9 arsenic it was specified a beauteous and inspirational locomotion and by acold 1 of my favourite hikes successful Utah, if not the USA.

The bushed legs did not cognize what they were successful for the time aft this adventure, erstwhile we recovered ourselves successful Spooky and Peek-a-Boo canyon, different hike and escapade successful Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and Utah you don’t privation to miss.

Lower Calf Creek Falls was featured successful our Best Waterfalls successful the US list.

Video: Watch Our Lower Calf Creek Falls

Where to Stay successful Grand Staircase-Escalante National Parks

The municipality of Escalante is adjacent for astir of your accommodation needs if you are not camping. Slot Canyons Inn Bed and Breakfast is simply a comfy and affordable edifice that comes highly recommended and is successful a desirable location.

We were boondocking, truthful we camped for escaped astatine the opening of the Hole-in-the-Road. There was loads of abstraction and beauteous scenery.

Calf Creek Campground

If you’re camping, determination is simply a 13-site campground adjacent this hike, Calf Creek Campground, with minimal facilities successful the Calf Creek Canyon.

The campsite looks gorgeous and I’d emotion to enactment present nether the shadiness of the trees nestled on broadside Calf Creek.

Camping is disposable for $15 connected a first-come first-served ground — it’s recommended that you get aboriginal connected the time you privation to camp

Car & RV Rental

If you don’t person your ain car, check present for rental car options from assorted Utah locations

You whitethorn privation to rent your ain RV, campervan oregon motorhome. Check retired RV share

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