Distance: 9 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 2390' (at Chiquito Falls)
Elevation Gain: 1550'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.2
Round trip time: 3 hours 15 minutes
Recommended water: 72 oz.
Parking/Fees: Adventure Pass
Difficulty: Moderate
Almost 8 years ago to the day was my first trip to Chiquito Falls. I've visited a few times since then and it's always been dry. With the heavy rain this year, it was surely flowing, so Leisa and I set out to take a look. We followed the same route, starting at the San Juan loop trailhead off Ortega Highway, then taking the Chiquito Trail. This time, there were several other parties coming and going. The north half of the San Juan loop goes by a different waterfall, San Juan Falls. It was flowing strongly, but I expected it to be raging. The stream crossing at the start of the Chiquito Trail was wide. Helpful step stones were in place to get us to the other side. The rest of the hike was a series of switchbacks up and over a ridge, then a descent into Lion Canyon where Chiquito Falls falls. Four other people were at the falls, splashing and exploring. We parked ourselves on a perch above it to rest and refuel. After so many dry visits, it was nice to see it flowing in person. Just before we left, one of the ladies splashing around above the falls lost one of her shoes and we watched it flow over. Fortunately for her, it was relatively easy to retrieve and didn't make it far downstream.
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