Falls Trail Tour - Stop 16

Upper Falls has different amounts of water depending on the time of year.

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Amenities

1 listed

Information Kiosk/Bulletin Board

Upper Falls was created by magma that cooled in the throat of the volcano as the eruptions ceased. This durable stone was resistant to erosion and withstood the downcutting of Frijoles Creek. This waterfall is approximately 80 feet tall. 

Upper Falls is the final stop on the trail. Frijoles Canyon formed when “el Rito de los Frijoles” (little river of beans) cut its way through layers of ash from immense volcanic eruptions. Today most changes are slow, as the soft rock walls of the canyon erode one minuscule particle of stone at a time, the grains giving way to the actions of wind, water, or freeze-thaw cycles. Plants also play a role in shaping the canyon. Their roots penetrate susceptible areas and pave the way for water or ice to break a rock’s grip on its neighbor.On occasion, this slow, plodding process is rapidly advanced by flash flooding. In these instances, rocks, trees, and water are carried ever further on their journey to the Rio Grande and ultimately the ocean. The cacophony of such events soon quiets again, leaving the sounds of gentle water babbling and murmuring over rocks, the strident call of a Steller’s jay, and the thump of an occasional rock as it loses its slow, ongoing fight with gravity.