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Submission
Fairly quick hike down. Please be sure to register at trailhead with time started and completed as a thank you to the rangers for scouting and marking the trail. Should be rated as moderate as without the markers finding the way down would be hazardous. Smartphones will not have signal here so be sure to download this trail beforehand. Really nice oasis and waterfall awaits you at the end.
This hike is a little tricky to find for it is not well marked on the road. I was lucky and went into Boulder and put it into my Google maps, and even then it said you have arrived and I looked around to see no signs or anything, just a little side road that was easy to miss. You have to take that side road for a little ways and then you see signs for the Upper Calf Creek Falls. I do know it is about 10 miles outside Boulder close by the Hells Backbone road. The hike heads down a steep huge Boulder where the trail is only marked by Carins. The trail varies from being a very distinctive path, to having to pay very close attention to the Carins to stay on the path. Pay super close attention to the Carins for it is so easy to get off the path and in scary situations, and if you loose Carins turn around quickly until you find those Carins. The waterfall here is beautiful. I read that the Upper Calf Creek is preferable over the Lower for there is. It the issue of so much Poison Ivy, and less crowds with just as pretty of a waterfall. The hike is only about a mile in and a mile back, unless you loose those Carins and then it can add quite a bit of distance on your hike. Stay close together as a group. I thought I was good at keeping my eye out for those Carins but many get lost easily so be careful. I got myself in a scary situation after loosing the trail, and would highly advise others to be cautious and vigilant about making sure they don't loose site of those Carins.
Really fun and hot hike. The final ascent can be brutal in the summer heat. Fairly steep. We had to take a few breaks because of the heat and steepness.
The falls were beautiful. We only saw them from above because we couldn’t find the turnoff that took you below the falls. We swam in the pool above the falls and it was very refreshing on a hot afternoon.
Bring plenty of water and clothes that will dry quickly if you want to swim.
We really enjoyed this hike. We were blessed with overcast and a breeze, so we didn't roast. The pools above the falls are beautiful and a great place to relax, cool off, and enjoy a break. The upper pool was even deep enough to jump off the ledge into when we went, so come prepared to swim if you dare brave the cold water. There isn't really a good way down to the bottom of the falls. There are some Cairns and what look like trails, but they aren't well-marked and we gave up. Not sure if those are reall trails to be honest. They confused us a bit. The last push back up to the parking area is the steepest climb, so make sure you have plenty of water and take a rest of you need to, especially when it's really hot out.
There’s no marker on the main road for the trail head but if you can find it, this is a hidden gem. The first third of the hike is all on rock then there is a trail which ends at the falls. There’s a perfect place to jump into the pool as well (water is cold).
