War Dance Falls
About
War Dance Falls is a waterfall in Grand County, Colorado, set at about 9,900 feet inside Rocky Mountain National Park and the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness. The National Park Service manages the land, and the nearest town is Grand Lake, about 6 miles away. Summer is the most comfortable time to visit. Typical averages from a nearby weather station at Grand Lake show July highs around 76°F with lows near 40°F, and the falls sit higher than that station, so expect it to run a little cooler. Lake Nanita Trail starts less than a mile away, and North Inlet offers canoeing about 2 miles off. Flat Top Mountain Trail and the Hallett Peak climbing area are both about 2.5 miles away.
Waterfall Facts
Elevation
9,900 ft
Land manager
National Park Service
Elevation from USGS 3D Elevation Program terrain data (about 10 m resolution).
Location
War Dance Falls
Colorado
Name and location: U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). Elevation: USGS 3D Elevation Program. View the GNIS record.
Facts about this place
When to go
Best time to go: Jun–Sep. The mildest months here, with typical highs of 68–76°F and lows of 32–40°F.
Typical monthly averages (not a forecast) from the Grand Lake 1 Nw, CO weather station, 5.6 mi away. High / low in °F, and days with snow.
- Jan30° high4° low14 days with snow
- Feb34° high6° low12 days with snow
- Mar42° high14° low9 days with snow
- Apr49° high20° low6 days with snow
- May59° high28° low2 days with snow
- Jun71° high34° low
- Jul76° high40° low
- Aug73° high38° low
- Sep68° high32° low1 days with snow
- Oct55° high23° low4 days with snow
- Nov40° high13° low9 days with snow
- Dec30° high5° low13 days with snow
The station sits about 1,200 ft lower than this spot, so expect it to run cooler up here.
Where it is
- Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness · Wilderness
- Rocky Mountain National Park · National Park Service
- Nearest town
- Grand Lake, Colorado · 5.9 mi
- Managed by
- National Park Service
Nearby
- Lake Nanita TrailHiking0.8 mi
- North InletCanoeing1.8 mi
Flat Top Mountain TrailHikingPhoto: michaelwm25, CC BY 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)2.5 mi
Hallett PeakRock climbingPhoto: Michael Murphy, CC BY 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)2.5 mi- Otis PeakRock climbing2.6 mi
- Glacier CreekCanoeing6.3 mi
Rocky Mountain National Park Glacier Basin CampgroundCampingPhoto: Recreation.gov (RIDB) / public domain7.7 mi- Green Ridge CampgroundCamping8.3 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
Is War Dance Falls open right now?
Closure in the area
There's a closure order in Rocky Mountain National Park. It doesn't name War Dance Falls, so check the source for the area it covers.
Trail Ridge Road Status Update
Park closure covering Rocky Mountain National Park · NPS · Rocky Mountain National Park
As of · Source: NPS · Rocky Mountain National Park. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Best time to visit War Dance Falls
Best months: June and September. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
30° / 4°
14 wet · 14 snow
Feb
34° / 6°
13 wet · 12 snow
Mar
42° / 14°
12 wet · 9 snow
Apr
49° / 20°
11 wet · 6 snow
May
59° / 28°
12 wet · 2 snow
Jun
71° / 34°
11 wet
Jul
76° / 40°
14 wet
Aug
73° / 38°
15 wet
Sep
68° / 32°
12 wet · 1 snow
Oct
55° / 23°
10 wet · 4 snow
Nov
40° / 13°
11 wet · 9 snow
Dec
30° / 5°
14 wet · 13 snow
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Grand Lake 1 Nw, CO, 5.6 mi away at 8,720 ft. The station sits about 1,200 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
