Seven Falls, Colorado Springs

Seven Falls is a series of seven cascading waterfalls that plunge 181 feet from the South Cheyenne Creek in South Cheyenne Canyon, Colorado Springs, Colorado.  It has been a privately owned tourist attraction since the early 1880s. After a devastating flood in 2013, it was bought and restored by the Broadmoor Resort and Hotel.  When my husband and I stayed at the Broadmoor in late September--click here to read that post-- to celebrate our wedding anniversary, we took a day outing to visit Seven Falls and hike some of the trails in the canyon.  (All photos and photo collages in this post will enlarge for easier viewing if clicked on.)

The South Cheyenne Canon Road to Seven Falls has been called "The Grandest Mile of Scenery" in Colorado.  On either side of the picturesque 1,125-foot canyon, we passed through the  "Pillars of Hercules," which are only 41 feet wide at their narrowest point and rise 940 feet on the right and 790 feet on the left.

Upon our shuttle bus arrival to the Seven Falls Visitors Center/gift shop, we saw a staircase that would bring us to the top of the "Eagle's Nest" viewing platform.  There were 181 steps that we could climb to the top...

...but instead, we opted to take the four-story elevator inside the mountain to the Eagles Nest viewing platform. There were placards inside the tunnel leading to the elevator that contained photos and interesting information about the history of the Seven Falls area.

The view of the entire 181 feet length of cascading Seven Falls is best seen from the Eagle's Nest viewing platform. Seven Falls is the only Colorado waterfall included on the National Geographic list of international wonders.

After we took the elevator back down to the bottom of the canyon we walked over to the bottom of the falls.

To see the waterfalls up close there is a staircase with  224 steps leading to two viewing platforms...

...and this time we walked up all the steps to the top of the falls

Along the way up the stairs, we saw the different fall formations/ From bottom to top they are Hill, Weimer, Hull, Shorty, Bridal Veil, Feather, and Ramona.

The stair climb up is scenic in all directions.

At the top of the Canyon, there are three hiking trails that one can take to see different sights. They are open certain hours and months--check the Seven Falls website for further information.  

One trail leads to Midnight Falls which is close to the headwaters of the South Cheyenne Creek...

....and the other trail leads to Inspiration Point, described above.

We did not hike the length of either trail due to time constraints, as we had early dinner reservations, but we did enjoy the beauty of the trail that we hiked partially. This majestic 450-year-old Ponderosa Pine tree captured my attention.

You can read more about this tree on the placard above that is situated in front of it.

We turned around and walked back through the quiet forest...

...back down the staircase next to the Seven Falls...

...and back to the rocking chair area where people waited for those that made the climb or just wanted to sit and listen to the sound of the falls.

The Broadmoor remodeled and enlarged an existing restaurant on the Seven Falls property, which they call Restaurant 1858.  It is an approximately 100 seat high end, rustic in appearance, restaurant, meant to evoke the feel of a gold rush era. It may be closed during inclement weather and admission to the Seven Falls area is required to dine there--check the website for further details.  The Broadmoor has also installed an area of 10 zip lines they call the Broadmoor Soaring Adventure, which also offers stunning views of the canyon for the adventurous.

Seven Falls was truly a wonderful sight to see, even in autumn when the amount of water is lower than spring time's snowmelt season. Next time we visit we'll leave more time to explore all the trails on top.  It is so exciting for me to be able to enjoy all these beautiful places in Colorado. There are many more places I have yet to see in this great state so there is much more to look forward to!