North Clear Creek Falls Explained

North Clear Creek Falls
Map:	Colorado
Coords Ref:	^[1]
Location:	Hinsdale County, Colorado
Elevation:	10013abbr=offNaNabbr=off
Number Drops:	1
Watercourse:	North Clear Creek
Type:	segmented, horsetail

North Clear Creek Falls is a waterfall in Hinsdale County, Colorado, located within the Rio Grande National Forest. North Clear Creek is a tributary of the Rio Grande. The waterfall flows over a deck of Nelson Mountain tuff,^[2] solidified ash from a volcano in the San Juan volcanic field that erupted about 27 million years ago.^[3]

Overlook

An overlook area with a parking lot and a short trail is located about a half-mile from Colorado State Highway 149 on a paved county road. Visitors can observe and photograph the waterfall from the overlook site. It features picnic tables and a vault toilet. The site is wheelchair accessible and features a trail to the top of a nearby bluff.^{[4] [5]}

Climate

The Santa Maria Reservoir weather station is roughly 3 miles (4.83 km) south of North Clear Creek Falls. Santa Maria Reservoir has a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc).

References

1. 186995 . North Clear Creek Falls.
2. Web site: North Clear Creek Falls . . World of waterfalls . 2018-11-01 .
3. Book: Blair, Rob . The eastern San Juan Mountains : their geology, ecology, and human history . University Press of Colorado Mountain Studies Institute/San Juan Collaboratory . Boulder, Colo . 2011 . 978-1-60732-084-5 . 758823260 .
4. Web site: North Clear Creek Falls Observation Site . . Rio Grande National Forest . United States. Department of Agriculture . 2018-11-01 .
5. 196950. North Clear Creek Falls Overlook.