Chasing a Thousand Waterfalls

After, the previous day’s misadventures, I decided to take it easy and just spend the day exploring the Endovalley area. The weather was gloomy in Boulder but up at alpine elevations in the park, a blue sky beckoned with fluffy white clouds. I had a vague goal of finding a steep creak flowing out of a hanging valley called Thousand Falls. But, once again, record-breaking snowmelt made the creek impassable. According to the news, this is the story all over the Rockies.

Water washing out bridge planks.

I sat and painted some watercolors of the creek. Later I hiked up to Chasm Fall, walking behind a velvet-antlered elk part of the way. On my way down, I chatted with some German hikers – total opposites of the Hip-Hop Hikers from yesterday. These guys refused to walk across snow without crampons and, in the current conditions, that limited them to hiking only on roads!

I stopped to explore boulder field with house sized boulders and discovered a cozy room, complete with a fire ring, beneath the boulders. Looking across the valley from atop the boulders, I could see flashes of white water tumbling down from the hanging valley. It was my Thousand Falls. It wasn’t the close-up view I’d wanted, but it was a nice surprise.






A Shooting Star flower.



Just below Chasm Falls.

Detail from Chasm Falls



The room under the boulders - it was

surprisingly spacious. A group of college
showed up to climb the boulders as I left.



Thousand Falls is the whitish line snaking

through the trees.



Zoom view of Thousand Falls



I know this photo isn't great, but I was really pleased to see

and catch a photo of this Rocky Mountain Bluebird!

One of many beetle-killed trees