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canyonwalkerColorado Travelog #32
Hays Creek Falls, CO - Thursday, 7 Jul 2022, 8pm
We left the north rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison after finishing up our hike to Exclamation Point and put the pedal to the metal. It was already a full day; yet we still had a few hours of driving to get to Glenwood Springs, our stop for the night. We wanted to be able to eat dinner at a reasonable hour and get to bed not too late— as we have another full day tomorrow, starting with a hiking reservation for Hanging Lake at 8:30am.
Driving from the remote north rim of Black Canyon to Glenwood Springs took us through a remote area of Colorado. In the valleys and mesas out here are a handful of small towns, all rural agricultural and mining towns. We looked for eats to see if we could at least have dinner before 10pm... but one Crawford had basically no restaurants, Hotchkiss had a few that were mostly closed, and Paonia was mostly wineries (that were also closed). I ate a protein bar to stave off hunger. It was my third bar of the day; basically the only food I've eaten!
We pressed on through the valleys and up over a high pass, aiming to reach Glenwood Springs as early as possible. It seemed we'd make it before 9— early enough still to get dinner and early enough to settle down for the night afterward at a reasonable hour. We were making good time as we climbed over the McClure Pass at 9,000'... then after dropping back down the other side we saw something that stopped us in our tracks. A waterfall. 😂
Hays Creek Falls is one we've actually been to before. I thought the stretch of road looked familiar when we passed the junction with State Route 3. Spotting these falls while zooming past at 55mph confirmed it. We visited these falls (briefly) when we were driving in the opposite direction to the almost-ghost town of Crystal, CO on a trip 4 years ago.
Of course, we didn't just blast past the falls at 55mph. I hit the brakes, pulled off on a wide spot in the road, made a quick U-turn, and drove back to the small parking pull-out in front of the falls.
From the road you can partly see the falls; that's how I knew where we were & that it was worth stopping. From the small parking area a walk of just a few tens of meters brings you up to the rock apron at the base of the falls where I snapped the photo above.
The entire stop took only about 10 minutes. Thus it wasn't really a setback in our timing to get to Glenwood Springs. But even if it had taken 30 minutes it would've been worth it. I guess I could always have a fourth protein bar for dinner if need be. 🤢
Hays Creek Falls, CO - Thursday, 7 Jul 2022, 8pm
We left the north rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison after finishing up our hike to Exclamation Point and put the pedal to the metal. It was already a full day; yet we still had a few hours of driving to get to Glenwood Springs, our stop for the night. We wanted to be able to eat dinner at a reasonable hour and get to bed not too late— as we have another full day tomorrow, starting with a hiking reservation for Hanging Lake at 8:30am.
Driving from the remote north rim of Black Canyon to Glenwood Springs took us through a remote area of Colorado. In the valleys and mesas out here are a handful of small towns, all rural agricultural and mining towns. We looked for eats to see if we could at least have dinner before 10pm... but one Crawford had basically no restaurants, Hotchkiss had a few that were mostly closed, and Paonia was mostly wineries (that were also closed). I ate a protein bar to stave off hunger. It was my third bar of the day; basically the only food I've eaten!
We pressed on through the valleys and up over a high pass, aiming to reach Glenwood Springs as early as possible. It seemed we'd make it before 9— early enough still to get dinner and early enough to settle down for the night afterward at a reasonable hour. We were making good time as we climbed over the McClure Pass at 9,000'... then after dropping back down the other side we saw something that stopped us in our tracks. A waterfall. 😂
Hays Creek Falls is one we've actually been to before. I thought the stretch of road looked familiar when we passed the junction with State Route 3. Spotting these falls while zooming past at 55mph confirmed it. We visited these falls (briefly) when we were driving in the opposite direction to the almost-ghost town of Crystal, CO on a trip 4 years ago.
Of course, we didn't just blast past the falls at 55mph. I hit the brakes, pulled off on a wide spot in the road, made a quick U-turn, and drove back to the small parking pull-out in front of the falls.
From the road you can partly see the falls; that's how I knew where we were & that it was worth stopping. From the small parking area a walk of just a few tens of meters brings you up to the rock apron at the base of the falls where I snapped the photo above.
The entire stop took only about 10 minutes. Thus it wasn't really a setback in our timing to get to Glenwood Springs. But even if it had taken 30 minutes it would've been worth it. I guess I could always have a fourth protein bar for dinner if need be. 🤢
