Echo
Falls, Lichen Falls, Vivian Falls,
and
Resumidero Falls
Echo Falls 50’ high on Rito Resumidero Lichen Falls 60’ high on Rio Puerco Vivian Falls 50’ high on Rito Redondo
The upper portion of Resumidero
Falls - 20’ high The
middle part is 15’ high The
lower portion of Resumidero Falls – 30’
Resumidero Box Falls – 25’ high Echo Falls below and Box Falls above as seen from the Puerco Box Canyon rim to the south
The
Redondo Box Canyon has numerous falls up to 20’ high Double
Falls drops 30 feet in two parts
The upper Rio Puerco watershed displays a
host of waterfalls that are second to none for grandeur. These falls have artistically sculpted
a massive deposit of bright pink granite. Lichen Falls, the 60’ tall queen of this group of
beauties, is locked in a sheer walled corridor draped with colorful
lichen. The best access into her
private quarters is a very steep but negotiable ravine that oozes a seeping
flow directly to her feet, from the northwest. Your climb in and out will yield rich rewards… and catch
Double Falls while you are close.
The smooth, vertical, granite walls that
engulf 50’ high Echo Falls, reverberate her sounds of many waters. The only access to her along with the
lowest un-named 20-foot falls of the upper Rio Puerco is an arduous struggle
for one mile up the creek without a trail from Rio Puerco Campground on forest
road 103. Tis a stickery, scratchy
ordeal.
Vivian Falls takes a dancing leap off her
50’ precipice of pink granite.
She’s as pretty as any you will ever see… and the quarter–mile hike to
her is easy, even without a trail.
Park your wheels where forest road 93 crosses over Rito Redondo. Head upstream and admire. Unfortunately all of her water gets
stolen away all summer to irrigate a meadow for cattle grazing….. poor Vivian…
she deserves better treatment than this.
You can see part of Resumidero Falls from
forest road 93 without getting out of your automobile… but do get out… walk and
scramble around. Life is good
here!!! This fall has three sections.
The upper part drops about 20 feet. However it pours under and thru a rib of solid granite half
way down, as seen in the photo above.
This is quite unique. I do
not know of this happening elsewhere.
The middle portion, which is hard to access, is a 15’ falls. The lower part is pictured above. It is a beautiful 30’ sparkling
pour-over. The total drop of all 3
parts of Resumidero Falls is approximately 65 feet.
Almost a mile downstream from Resumidero
Falls is a very friendly granite box canyon with easy egress and ingress from
upstream. I strongly suggest a
hike into 25’ high Resumidero Box Falls.
Just below this point the sheer drop of Echo Falls will stop you
abruptly. The west rim of the Rio
Puerco Box Canyon between Resumidero Box Falls and Lichen Falls is a
breath-taking hike. See this
circle of falls as a loop hike beginning and ending at the same set of wheels.
The Redondo Box with its countless falls is
a green and wet wonderland. Even
tho there is no trail it is an easy walk of about a mile above Vivian Falls.
(see also Puerco Falls)
Enhanced
National Geographic 7.5’ topo map
The
thin red section lines above represent one mile
Send questions and comments to doug.vivian@yahoo.com