Sight · Yellowstone National Park
A substantial waterfall at the end of the 17-mile Bechler hike.
Overview
Warm pools are often reported near the base, but that does not make them an authorized or safe bathing spot. Treat the waterfall as the destination and don’t plan the trip around soaking.
Dunanda Falls is a broad plunge waterfall on Boundary Creek in Yellowstone’s remote Bechler corner. Reaching it takes roughly 17 miles round trip from Bechler Ranger Station, so save it for an all-day backcountry hike. The payoff is a substantial cascade dropping from the Madison Plateau rim; this is a poor fit if you want a quick stop.
Parkwolf’s verdictWorth the long walk?Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yellowstone Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yellowstone National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yellowstone audio tourRecorded for this place
Bechler Ranger Station and Backcountry Office“You're nearing Bechler Ranger Station, a useful first stop for exploring this remote corner of the park. The backcountry office has maps and ranger advice for hikes through the meadows and waterfall country.”
Plays as you drive up to Dunanda Falls in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
“First time driving through a national park. We used the Yellowstone tour on grand loop Road and it’s just like having a tour guide in your car with you.”
Guide
The way in crosses open Bechler Meadows and forest, then climbs toward the plateau edge. Much of the walk is gradual, but it still includes several creek crossings and a final climb; depending on water levels, some crossings may require wading. Bechler Ranger Station is about 24 miles from Ashton, Idaho, with the last 12 miles on unpaved road. Pets aren’t allowed on park trails or in the backcountry. Overnight stays require a backcountry permit, and camping is limited to designated sites.
Several overlooks on the spur look down and across Boundary Creek. The rim is the sensible place to stop: a more direct view from stream level involves a steep, informal descent. From an overlook, include the creek below the falls to show their scale; spray can form a rainbow when the sun is behind you.
The Bechler corner gets heavy precipitation. Early in the season, expect wetter meadows, higher streams and more mosquitoes; late summer and fall are generally drier, and autumn color can show on the hillside near the falls. These are seasonal patterns, not a report on current trail conditions.
Explorer W. C. Gregg is credited with discovering Dunanda Falls in 1920. The origin of the name has not been established, and accounts disagree on the waterfall’s height, so a precise figure is best left out.
Wildlife
713 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
743 sightingsWolfMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
5,273 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
3,258 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
397 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,494 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yellowstone. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Parkwolf’s Yellowstone ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
