About Faux Falls
Faux Falls was another one of the waterfalling surprises during our return trip to Moab, Utah in 2017. Like the name suggests the waterfall was technically not real (“faux” is French for something that’s not genuine) as it was created by a diversion tunnel siphoning some of Mill Creek (the same stream responsible for Mill Creek Falls) through some tunnels and eventually feeding Ken’s Lake. With water being such a precious resource, the state of Utah was no stranger to diversions resulting in waterfalls for we’ve seen at least two instances of this at the “Freemont River Falls” and
the “Mossy Cave Falls”. But Faux Falls had the scenery to augment its scenic allure, and we generally thought of it as on par with other diverted waterfalls like Cascata delle Marmore in Terni, Italy and Oxararfoss in Iceland. Yet, perhaps what this waterfall had going for it in addition to scenic allure was the chance to beat the desert heat of Southeastern Utah by being refreshed by the waterfall’s spray or dipping the feet in a calm part of the diverted stream. There were even campsites between Ken’s Lake and the waterfall trail/road making this one of the better recreational spots of this region.
I began my hike from a little parking area right before an access road became 4wd (see directions below). I felt that I had to walk the 4wd road (which was about a half-mile long but very rocky and sandy) so I didn’t have the confidence to take a high-clearance passenger vehicle on it even though it might have made it with some real slow and careful driving. Faux Falls was already visible from the start of the 4wd road, but it pretty much went in and out of view until I got towards the end of the road where the falls became more consistently visible once again. At the end of the road, there was a little sandy cul-de-sac where a wooden fence marked the beginning of the official trail.
Even though the view of Faux Falls was already pretty impressive from this spot, I continued on the short trail, which descended to a junction where I first went left to access the base of the waterfall. I saw people on the other side of the rushing stream so it was possible to cross, but it would require getting wet. Still, that would be a worthwhile trade if you came prepared to get wet, especially if the goal was to cool off by the falls in the first place. Anyways, back at the trail junction, the main trail then ascended alongside the cascading waterfall, eventually reaching the brink of the main section of cascades. The trail actually continued to ascend maybe less than 0.2 miles beyond the waterfall, eventually reaching some kind of pullout and gate near the diversion tunnel that was responsible for the waterfall’s existence. I was actually at that pullout earlier when I drove up there accidentally after missing the correct turnoff for the trailhead, so I guess that could be a possibility in terms of shortening the hike or if parking was unavailable at the official trailhead.
Overall, I had spent about 75 minutes away from the car. By choosing to walk the half-mile 4wd road, that made the 1/4-mile hike to get close to the falls become more like 1.25 miles round trip. It was hard to say how seasonal or how often this waterfall would flow, but it was definitely gushing during our trip in late April 2017. I had to believe that the amount of snow we saw that was still on the neighboring La Sal Mountains had something to do with it. Either way, when the falls would flow, it was said to be the biggest waterfall in the Moab area. While there were a couple dozen people coming in and out of the waterfall’s vicinity, it didn’t feel like there was a big crush of people here so it could very well still be like a local’s secret.
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