Round Trip Distance: 0.8 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Elevation: 8372 - 8483 feet
Cellphone: 1-4 bars
Time: 45 mins.
Trailhead: East Inlet
Fee: $20/vehicle
Attractions: Scenic mountain trail, moose, waterfall
The Adams Falls trail is located in the Rocky Mountain National Park near the mountain village of Grand Lake, Colorado. The picturesque cascading waterfall is a favorite short hike with many locals and visitors and a natural stopping off point for hikers that are continuing on up the trail to Lone Pine Lake and other destinations. The falls and most of the trail are just outside of the park boundaries but it is still listed as one of the parks official hikes. With the trailhead being outside of park boundaries there is no entrance or use fee.
The hike begins at the East Inlet trailhead near the east end of Grand Lake.
The trail to Adams Falls is well signed and very easy to follow. It takes awhile for the sun to get high enough to shine over the mountains to the east.
One nice thing about hiking in the early morning and evening hours is that the wildlife are more likely to be moving around. This cow moose had a calf nearby in the bushes. By the time we came back down the trail other hikers were coming up and the only signs of the moose were some faint tracks and some scat.
Once the sun begins bathing it with light and warmth the trail is very pretty and peaceful.
The trail begins a loop just over a quarter mile from the trailhead. Adams Falls is a short distance along the fork on the right.
So, did they put the warning sign up out of forethought or did Search and Rescue get tired of hauling hikers to the hospital.
Some very nice masonry construction creates a great place to observe Adams Falls. People still have a tough time resisting climbing down the cliff to get a closer look.
Adams Falls cascades beneath the overlook for about 100 feet before it disappears out of sight around the bend. The area beneath the falls is closed to hiking for rehabilitation.
Here is a short video clip of the waterfall taken in late August. Spring runoff would be much more dramatic of course.
The trail continues to loop along the creek above the falls where it rejoins the trail heading on up the canyon toward either Lone Pine Lake or back to the trailhead.
