Rifle Falls State Park, with its mysterious caves and beautiful triple waterfall, is one of the gems of the Colorado State Parks system. The falls spill over a limestone cliff that geologists think may have formed in the waters of a beaver dam. The stagnant water behind the dam became saturated with chemicals, forming thick limestone deposits that are now exposed cliffs. The thundering water that sprays out from the cliff creates a misty world of moss covered rocks and lush foliage along the base of the falls. Dark caves lurk in the limestone cliffs under the falls, including a 90 foot room that requires a flashlight for exploration.
To log this Earthcache, you will need to take a walk around the falls and find the answers on information plaques on the trail. No pictures of the answers please. The answers are not hard to find, and should be fairly short to answer.
#1 What gives the cliffs under the falls their light color??
#2 The limestone caves start as tiny holes that water slowly dissolves into large caverns. What builds up wherever water was present, even on old plants that grew on the cave walls?
#3 What is lithophyte?