Sight · Yellowstone National Park
A hard hike to a 150-foot waterfall in Sheepeater Canyon.
Overview
Osprey Falls is a 150-foot waterfall on the Gardner River at the bottom of Sheepeater Canyon in northern Yellowstone. Getting there and back means an 8-mile strenuous hike, usually 4–6 hours. Do it when you want a full hike with a big waterfall payoff; skip it if you have time only for a short stop.
Parkwolf’s verdictA waterfall worth a full hikeMap
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
Bunsen Peak Trailhead“You're nearing the Bunsen Peak trailhead, a good choice if you want a summit hike with views over Swan Lake Flats and the Gallatin Mountains.”
Plays as you drive up to Osprey Falls in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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 first three miles follow the old Bunsen Peak roadbed across open grassland and burned forest. Then a steep, narrow switchback trail drops about 700 feet into the canyon. Follow the Gardner River upstream to the falls and return the same way. The climb back out is the hard part. In warm weather, start early enough to avoid doing it in the heat of the day.
The trail ends about 30 feet from the waterfall, which drops over the edge of a lava flow into the Gardner River. This is a close canyon-floor view, with dark rock walls and the river in the foreground. For a photo, keep some of that river in the frame so the falls don't lose their scale. Wet rocks near the base can be slick, so stay on stable footing.
The basalt unit called Osprey Basalt is named for these falls. Its type section lies about 3,200 feet north, along the west wall of Sheepeater Canyon. That outcrop contains six columnar-jointed basalt flows stacked above one another, with gravel layers between some of the lower flows. The waterfall itself spills over a lava flow, so the rock is part of what you're here to see.
Park in the small, unpaved lot just south of Golden Gate, across from Glen Creek Trailhead and about five miles south of Mammoth Hot Springs. It can fill in summer. The park lists this as a summer and fall hike, and pets aren't allowed. There is no food or potable water along the route, so bring what you need for the full outing and the climb back 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.
Keep exploring
ModerateBunsen Peak Road Trail6 mi · 3 hr · 2.3 mi awayA level old road turns into a steep canyon descent.
ModerateBunsen Peak Trail4.6 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.3 mi awaySwitchbacks climb to a broad view over Swan Lake Flats.
EasyHoward Eaton Trail: Glen Creek to Mammoth Hot Springs4 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.3 mi awayDownhill through the Hoodoos into Mammoth’s old spring terraces.
ModerateGlen Creek Trail11.9 mi · 6.5 hr · 2.3 mi awayA long walk through sagebrush flats beneath Electric Peak.
ChallengingSportsman Lake Trail24 mi · 14.5 hr · 2.4 mi awayA long Gallatin crossing past a remote lake and over a pass.
ModerateLava Creek Trail8.4 mi · 5 hr · 2.5 mi awayA creek canyon leads to a 60-foot waterfall and river junction.
ModerateSnow Pass Trail3 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.6 mi awayA steep, forested climb to a 7,450-foot pass.
EasyWraith Falls Trail0.8 mi · 45 min · 3 mi awayA short meadow walk ends at a 79-foot waterfall viewpoint.
Sight · 2 mi awayMount Everts ViewpointA 37-day survival story above layers separated by 60 million years
Sight · 2.2 mi awayGolden GateAn 11-arch viaduct bends around a golden canyon wall.
Sight · 2.2 mi awayUndine FallsA 60-foot waterfall breaks into three drops just off the road.
Picnic area · 2.5 mi awayLava Creek Picnic AreaFive tables beside Lava Creek; two trails start across the road.
Sight · 2.9 mi awayWraith FallsA short climb to a 79-foot cascade on Lupine Creek.
Sight · 3.1 mi awayMammoth Hot Springs Lower TerracesHeat-loving microbes tint travertine orange, green and brown.
Sight · 3.1 mi awayOrange Spring MoundOrange travertine still growing beside Upper Terrace Drive.
Campground · 3.4 mi awayMammoth CampgroundA base where elk sometimes wander among the campsites.Parkwolf’s Yellowstone ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
