Lower Clear Creek Falls

From Silverton, follow the Million Dollar Highway (US 550) north toward Red Mountain Pass and Ouray for 2 miles, then bear left onto Road 7 and follow it for 4.6 miles to the crossing of Clear Creek (in a culvert, not a bridge) and park where space allows. The base of the falls is found 250 feet upstream from the road, and the falls are visible from the road where it crosses Clear Creek. A narrow trail on the right side of the creek provides closer access.The Clear Creek drainage near Silverton is pockmarked with waterfalls, many of which are visible from or near the Ice Lakes Trail. The lower-most of the falls along the stream can be easily viewed from the road near the Ice Lakes Trailhead. Here, Clear Creek cascades down a three-step fall which totals perhaps 45 feet in height, in individual steps of approximately 15, 10, and 20 feet respectively. The falls bend slightly to the left over the course of its fall, and the presence of some trees on the right side of the falls partially obscures views of the entire falls from the road, however following a narrow trail upstream to the base of the falls allows for a closer view of each individual section of the falls.
The Clear Creek basin covers an area of approximately 10.5 square miles, and is fed in part by at least a dozen lakes of varying sizes, and extends to elevations as high as 13,700 feet above sea level. The presence of the multiple lakes in the basin ensures a consistent flow of water in Clear Creek all year, though because there is no permanent ice feeding the lakes or streams, the volume of water in the creek will be reduced during the warmest months of the year after the winter snow pack has completely melted off.This waterfall doesn't seem to have an official name, but is commonly referred to as Clear Creek Falls. Because there are many other waterfalls along Clear Creek further upstream, we felt it necessary to clarify it as Lower Clear Creek Falls for the time being (until and unless more information shows Clear Creek Falls to be an appropriately proper title).