Hiking to Agnes Vaille Falls

We took a short drive south to Chalk Creek Canyon near Nathrop. The Chalk Cliffs are on the bottom southeast edge of Mt. Princeton (elevation 14, 197'). A sign reads: "The striking white cliffs on Mt. Princeton are made not of chalk but of kaolinite, a soft rock produced by hot springs percolating through cracks in the mountain." Along the road we did see several 'hot springs' resorts that looked quite busy.

We decided to hike to Agnes Vaille Falls which was described as a 'short and easy' hike, right up our alley. The middle photo shows Doug toward the start of the hike. The only difficult part was the proliference of loose rocks - we had to watch our footing. The path took us up onto the mountain side a bit. The area is described as having Bighorn Sheep but we didn't see any. The waterfall was very pretty - wish I could have captured the sound.

There were several interpretive markers -- this one tells the story of why it was named after Agnes. "Born in 1890 to a prominent Denver family, Agnes Wolcott Vaille pursued an adventurous life. During World War I, she joined the American Red Cross in France. When she returned, she became Secretary of the Denver Chamber of Commerce. Agnes always had a passion for hiking and mountain climbing. During a winter ascent of 14,255 ft Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park, Agnes slipped on ice and fell down the north face of the mountain. She survived the fall but froze to death before help could arrive."
A close friend who discovered the falls named it after Agnes.

We saw many houses and cabins from the road on the way back, some perched high in the foothills. Rather remote living and no cell phone coverage in the canyon. Beautiful, but we'll take our amenities. Being able to visit such gorgeous areas within a short drive is like having our cake and eating it too.