At the end of our camping trip, we went here to photograph the 80 foot triple waterfall located in Rifle Falls State Park, just outside of Rifle, Colorado. 

Rifle Falls has been a tourist attraction since 1884.  James Watson owned the property and built the Rifle Falls Ranch charging admission for visiting the waterfalls and caves. Allan Zerbe created the Zerbe Resort that offered cabins for overnight tourists visiting the falls which operated from 1890 – 1922.

In 1910 the rifle Hydroelectric Plant was built for the town of Rifle, which was the first hydroelectric plant in Colorado.  The falls served as a source of hydroelectric power from 1915 until 1959. 

In 1966, Rifle Falls became a state park which focused on recreation for tourism yet again. 

All images taken in 2008 on Mamiya RZ67 Pro II