Here is an elevation profile of the trail:

Hiking to Lower Calf Creek Falls is an absolute must if you are in the Boulder/Escalante area of Utah.  I would even say that it’s worth the trip from just about anywhere you live.  I consider this hike one of the best adventures we offer at The Trek Planner and even in the state of Utah!  I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it, despite the hot temperatures.

If you are hiking in the hot months (May-August) I highly recommend you start early, maybe around 7:30 am to 8:30 am.  This way, you will reach the falls when the temperatures are hotter but you can then relax in the cool water.  Or hiking in the late afternoon would be pleasant as well.  When I hiked to Lower Calf Creek Falls, I started around 8:30 am and it was already 85° degrees Fahrenheit.  I recommend you bring bug spray!  I was swarmed most of the hike by no see ums and larger flies.  If I hadn’t of brought bug spray I think I would have been pretty miserable.

You start off in the same parking lot as the Calf Creek campground.  Here, you will find the restrooms (flushing style), drinking fountains, and this is where you need to pay the entrance fee too.  You will need to pay in cash using the envelopes.  If you have an interagency park pass, it is free.  Just write down your pass number on the envelope.  Make sure you have plenty of water and snacks before starting this hike!

The official trailhead is about 800 ft from the parking area.  Pick up a trail guide if you want as you will see many numbered sites of interest along the way including granaries, pictographs, and natural and geological things.

The entire trail doesn’t gain much in elevation so you won’t be using too much energy going up and down these small inclines and declines.  The hardest part about this hike is the 6 miles and the hiking in the desert.

If you have a trail guide, you will see several granaries built by the ancient inhabitants of this area. Granaries are rock structures with a mud plaster and were used to store food and other items.  They are often in hard to reach places and all of these in the Lower Calf Creek area are inaccessible without an extreme amount of effort.

You will see areas where beavers have built up and improved the canyon.  There are many shallow pools and what seems to be marshlands along the trail.  The trail follows Calf Creek so if you ever need to cool down, just head to some shade or go splash some cold water on your face from the creek.  It’s also good to know that you won’t need to get your feet wet crossing the creek.

Some pictographs are located across the canyon.  These three giant red painted pictographs could be spiritual figures, warriors, or representations.  The meaning is lost but you can see their triangle frames from far away.

This canyon is full of life from the plants to the animals and birds.  I even saw some hummingbirds!  Keep an eye out for the many different types of birds that love all the water!

I was surprised by how much shade there is on the trail.  You will pass by 5-8 ft tall bushes and scrub oak trees and cottonwood trees for almost the entire trail.  The BLM (Bureau of Land Management) governs this trail and they have built some benches so you can rest and relax along the way.

Once you pass the 1.5 mile mark you will see several more granaries in the cliffs.  These are kind of hard to see but there are more numbered signs to show you where they are located.  Here, you will also pass by a small marsh.

Continue on and you will come through a small snake grass forest.  I loved this part because by this point it was getting very hot and the constant shade was very nice.  The canyon also narrows a bit and the sun hadn’t yet heated up this area.

You will probably be able to hear the waterfall in the distance soon.

The top of the waterfall will be the first thing you see once it comes into view.  Keep going the remaining distance and you will finally see Lower Calf Creek Falls!  This incredible 126 ft tall waterfall cascades down the red and orange sandstone into a large pool.  You are free to swim in it but it is very cold even in the middle of July!  I saw some trout (I think brown trout??) in the deeper parts of the pool too.

There are plenty of shallow areas for kids to play in and also lots of shady areas before the beach so this would be a good spot for a hammock or towel.   Lots of people brought towels to lay on the beach and I even saw a few people in hammocks.

After sweating for 3 miles it felt really good to get in the cold water and swim around for a bit.  Notice all of the plant life that hang on the cliffs and drink up the water as it seeps out from the sandstone cracks.  This truly is an incredible place that deserves more respect.  I picked up several handfuls of trash just in the immediate area I was sitting in. 

There are no restrooms at the falls or anywhere along the trail except at the parking lot.

I was told that there are some petroglyphs near the falls.  I never found them so maybe you will have better luck than I did.

I think I spent two hours swimming and relaxing at the falls.  It’s easy to lose track of time at such an amazing place.