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DeutschNorth Clear Creek Falls
| North Clear Creek Falls | |
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.JPG){kind=spacer} The falls in autumn, 2018 | |
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| Location | Hinsdale County, Colorado |
| Coordinates | 37°50′57″N 107°9′1.18″W / 37.84917°N 107.1503278°W[1] |
| Type | segmented, horsetail |
| Elevation | 10,013 feet (3,052 meters) |
| Number of drops | 1 |
| Watercourse | North Clear Creek |
North Clear Creek Falls is a waterfall in Hinsdale County, Colorado, located within the Rio Grande National Forest. North Clear Creek is a tributary of the Rio Grande. The waterfall flows over a deck of Nelson Mountain tuff,[2] solidified ash from a volcano in the San Juan volcanic field that erupted about 27 million years ago.[3]
Overlook[edit]
An overlook area with a parking lot and a short trail is located about a half-mile from Colorado State Highway 149 on a paved county road. Visitors can observe and photograph the waterfall from the overlook site. It features picnic tables and a vault toilet. The site is wheelchair accessible and features a trail to the top of a nearby bluff.[4][5]
Climate[edit]
The Santa Maria Reservoir weather station is roughly 3 miles (4.83 km) south of North Clear Creek Falls. Santa Maria Reservoir has a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc).
| Climate data for Santa Maria Reservoir, Colorado, 1991–2020 normals, 2006-2020 snowfall: 9687ft (2953m) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 55 (13) | 56 (13) | 60 (16) | 67 (19) | 73 (23) | 84 (29) | 83 (28) | 80 (27) | 79 (26) | 73 (23) | 63 (17) | 53 (12) | 84 (29) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 48 (9) | 50 (10) | 54 (12) | 61 (16) | 68 (20) | 78 (26) | 79 (26) | 76 (24) | 74 (23) | 67 (19) | 59 (15) | 48 (9) | 79 (26) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 34.8 (1.6) | 36.4 (2.4) | 41.8 (5.4) | 47.6 (8.7) | 57.9 (14.4) | 68.1 (20.1) | 72.5 (22.5) | 69.7 (20.9) | 64.3 (17.9) | 54.8 (12.7) | 42.9 (6.1) | 33.8 (1.0) | 52.0 (11.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 18.3 (−7.6) | 19.9 (−6.7) | 26.8 (−2.9) | 33.2 (0.7) | 42.3 (5.7) | 51.1 (10.6) | 56.4 (13.6) | 54.3 (12.4) | 48.5 (9.2) | 38.7 (3.7) | 28.0 (−2.2) | 18.0 (−7.8) | 36.3 (2.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 1.7 (−16.8) | 3.4 (−15.9) | 11.7 (−11.3) | 18.8 (−7.3) | 26.6 (−3.0) | 34.1 (1.2) | 40.2 (4.6) | 38.8 (3.8) | 32.6 (0.3) | 22.6 (−5.2) | 13.1 (−10.5) | 2.1 (−16.6) | 20.5 (−6.4) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −16 (−27) | −15 (−26) | −7 (−22) | 5 (−15) | 15 (−9) | 25 (−4) | 33 (1) | 32 (0) | 22 (−6) | 8 (−13) | −5 (−21) | −16 (−27) | −19 (−28) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −29 (−34) | −20 (−29) | −13 (−25) | −2 (−19) | 4 (−16) | 21 (−6) | 27 (−3) | 28 (−2) | 14 (−10) | −5 (−21) | −16 (−27) | −23 (−31) | −29 (−34) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.09 (28) | 1.14 (29) | 1.05 (27) | 1.55 (39) | 1.02 (26) | 0.83 (21) | 2.31 (59) | 2.97 (75) | 2.13 (54) | 1.51 (38) | 0.91 (23) | 1.05 (27) | 17.56 (446) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 15.3 (39) | 16.1 (41) | 14.6 (37) | 10.3 (26) | 5.3 (13) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | trace | 1.2 (3.0) | 5.6 (14) | 12.0 (30) | 20.0 (51) | 100.4 (254) |
| Source 1: NOAA[6] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: XMACIS (snowfall, records & monthly max/mins)[7] | |||||||||||||
References[edit]
- ^ "North Clear Creek Falls". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "North Clear Creek Falls". World of waterfalls. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
- ^ Blair, Rob (2011). The eastern San Juan Mountains : their geology, ecology, and human history. Boulder, Colo: University Press of Colorado Mountain Studies Institute/San Juan Collaboratory. ISBN 978-1-60732-084-5. OCLC 758823260.
- ^ "North Clear Creek Falls Observation Site". Rio Grande National Forest. United States. Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
- ^ "North Clear Creek Falls Overlook". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "Santa Maria Reservoir, Colorado 1991-2020 Monthly Normals". Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ "xmACIS". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved November 3, 2023.