As a part of our vacation this last summer we decided to visit the controversial Roan Plateau in west central Colorado. If you have ever driven on I70 between Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction you have driven by the Roan Plateau. It is on the north side of the highway just west of Riffle. The Plateau has been in the news this last 2 years due to the BLM opening much of the land up to drilling and exploration. We had been following the controversy in the news and decided it was time to see in person what they were talking about. Our destination was East Parachute Creek Falls.

I had read about the falls and it was supposed to be one of Colorado hidden gems. After an extensive search using Google I was finally able to locate some turn by turn directions. Thanks to the BLM for having current road numbers posted or this would not have been possible.  As it was, we made one wrong turn that I Recommend for everyone.

We started in Riffle with the goal of driving up JCQ Road (there is an alternate Plateau access up Cow Creek Access Road) which provides a narrow 10 mile access route up the South East corner of the Plateau. This Road / Trail was initially established in 1885 by H.W. Hallett as a stock trail to assess the top of the plateau for grazing.  The route provides a picturesque climb on to the plateau with panoramic views of the valley bellow. This route is not recommended when the roads are wet.  JQS Road starts across the road from the Bowling ally located 2.3 miles north on State Hwy 13 from the intersection of Railroad Ave and 13 in Riffle.

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On JQS Road

The top of JQS road is where we made the wrong turn. If you go Left at the Roan Cliffs sign you will be on the Roan Cliffs Road. Most people driving I 70 have seen the massive Roan Cliffs that tower over the interstate.  This road will take you out to the top of these cliffs.

View from the top

Once we got turned around and going the right direction the drive got a little more interesting. Like I said we had turn by turn instructions based on road number. The Roan Cliffs Road is a graded road used for access by drilling trucks and personnel so, be careful on blind corners. Once heading north on the Roan Cliffs Road you will find the first intersection, road 8008, turn on the road and head west.  Starting at this point you will be on graded and double track roads that are best for high clearance vehicles.

You will now be following a number of small roads that take you towards the west side of the Plateau.

• West on JQS Road
• Right on Roan Cliffs Road (Road 8000)
• Left on Long Ridge Road (Road 8008)
• After about 6 take the left fork on Road  8011
• After  about 1 mile take a left again onto Road 8012
• After about ½ mile look for a road on the right that heads North West down the ridge.
•  This road will lead down through a few switch backs to a cabin. The road extends past the cabin to a trail head but I recommend that you have 4wd for this last ½ mile. If you are not in a 4wd find a place to park that is uphill from the cabin. Once past the cabin there is no place to turn around until the trail head. (Note: If you pull off onto a grassy area be sure your
  catalytic
  converter does not start a fire). We drove down to the trail head at the end of the road and parked to start our hike. This short ½ mile section added a lot of new brush scratches to the side of my FJ Cruiser.

View of cabin near trail head

The trail to the falls heads down stream on the north-west side of the small creek.  After a few hundred feet the trail crosses to the south-east side of the creeks and continues on what look like an old road bed.  The trail follows the contour until you pass through a gate and reach a point where you can look down East Fork Parachute Canyon.  The trail now proceeds down a ruff shale section heading south-east and then turns north-west through another gate and then crosses the creek. Once across the creek there is a short climb back up then the trail again starts descending.  After you cross a section of loose shale start looking to the right for the falls. The view from the trail is good but I recommend bushwhacking down to the bottom of the falls.

View down east Parachute Creek

We headed down trail until we found a good point to drop over the edge and then we traversed over to the creek a few hundred feet downstream from the bottom of the falls. Be careful of the slick rocks in the creek bed. Once at the bottom you will be rewarded with a fantastic view and if the day is hot a great place to cool down.

Looking up from the Bottom of the Falls

To return to the trail head reverse your route.

We are looking forward to another trip back to the Plateau to explore more of the area. Drilling platforms are already starting to dot the land scape. All it is going to take is a few miss steps and spills and something like the falls will be trashed.

Trip Detail: Drive Time from Riffle: 2-3 hours
Hike Time: 3-5 hours
Altitude Lost/Gained on Hike:  Approximately 1200’

Track file will be available later.