Hiking the North Rim of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Last year we hiked the South Rim trail of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone including Uncle Tom's trail, which consists of more than 300 steps down a metal stairway about 500 feet into the canyon. This year we decided to take the North Rim trail to see the Upper and Lower Falls from a different direction. We parked near the brink of the Upper Falls and made our way down a short path to see where the falls begin.

This is the Yellowstone River before it goes over the edge.

We stood where it starts down the falls. This is the scene looking down on the falls.

Surprisingly there were flowers growing out of the rocks as we looked down.

After listening to the roar of the water and marveling at the speed of the water going over the edge we continued along the path. This is the view of the Upper Falls from a distance.

 

Less than a mile down the trail we came to the brink of the Lower Falls. We had the option of walking down a switchback path about 600 feet. As we proceeded down my mind kept repeating what we heard at the real Grand Canyon several years ago, "What goes down must come up." There were benches along the way so I figured we would be ok.

 

 



After eight switchbacks we were finally at the bottom of the path and ready to see the falls from the top.

Here is what we saw.

Across the river we could see the steps that we took last year.

This is a group of people at the bottom facing us and seeing the 308 ft Lower Falls from the opposite side.

The view was amazing looking down. The white clump across the river is a snow pile that has not melted. I verified it with a ranger because we were not sure if it was snow or a rock.

The climb back up to the main trail was exhausting, but we stopped many times so I could catch my breath. The altitude of over 7000 ft got to me. Once we were on the level trail again the hike was more enjoyable. This is a view of Lower Falls from farther down the trail.

Dan zoomed in to get a picture showing where we were standing at the brink of the falls. You can see the people on the right side of the falls.

The trail continued along the canyon where we saw many beautiful sights. There was an osprey in its nest on one of the hilltops. We could see it with the binoculars.

We stopped at lookout point to view the river.

Another stop was Grand View where the river flowed below us.

The length of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone is 20 miles but we only walked less than five miles out and back. That was enough for me! After the hike we explored the Canyon Village stores and enjoyed a huckleberry ice cream as a treat.

Next week we're heading to Cody, WY for our weekend.