Parking
The trailhead is on Grand Loop Road, about seven miles east of Mammoth. The park listing gives no separate lot name or parking capacity.
Overview
About Blacktail Deer Creek to Yellowstone River Trail
Why go
- A clear river-bridge destination after meadows and a creek canyon.
- Hidden Falls and columnar basalt add detail to the descent.
Heads up
- The 1,100-foot descent becomes a long uphill return.
Blacktail Deer Creek to Yellowstone River Trail is a 7.4-mile out-and-back from Grand Loop Road to a suspension bridge over the Yellowstone River. It drops about 1,100 feet from rolling grassland into a creek canyon, then makes you climb back up the same way. Allow four to five hours. This is a strenuous day hike, best for visitors ready for a long uphill return. The bridge is the turnaround for this route; the trail beyond it continues as the separate Yellowstone River Trail.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the hike for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Yellowstone map
Full mapElevation5,614–6,755 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
5 active Yellowstone alerts
- ClosureBiscuit Basin closed after hydrothermal explosionBiscuit Basin’s parking lot, boardwalk, and Firehole River are closed to all travel.Official details
- ClosureMost Yellowstone roads close to regular vehicles November 1Most Yellowstone roads and the West, South, and East entrances are scheduled to close to regular vehicles November 1, 2026, as the park prepares for winter operations.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yellowstone Tour Guide
Hear Yellowstone as you drive it.
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 trailhead
Blacktail Creek Trailhead0:00 / 0:26
“You're nearing Blacktail Creek Trailhead, where the Blacktail Deer Creek hike leads down to a suspension bridge over the Yellowstone River.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Forces of the Northern Range Trail
- Wraith Falls Trailhead
- Lava Creek Picnic Area
- Undine Falls
- 243 audio storiesacross Yellowstone’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Wolf, Grizzly Bear, Bison, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 167 trails, 192 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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.”
Trail guide
Hiking Blacktail Deer Creek to Yellowstone River Trail
Across the upper meadowsThe trail starts about seven miles east of Mammoth and crosses open, rolling grassland before…
The trail starts about seven miles east of Mammoth and crosses open, rolling grassland before heading into Douglas-fir forest and following Blacktail Deer Creek downhill. Early junctions lead to the Blacktail Ponds Spur and Rescue Creek, so watch the trail names and stay on the creek-to-river route.
Down into the canyonThe route loses most of its elevation on a steep descent toward the creek and river.
The route loses most of its elevation on a steep descent toward the creek and river. Hidden Falls, roughly 20 feet high, sits just off the trail near the beginning of the drop. Look across the creek for the columnar basalt wall: the columns formed as an old lava flow cooled and cracked. Slow down here; the waterfall is a short side look, not a separate trail destination.
At the riverA steel suspension footbridge crosses the Yellowstone River at the turnaround.
A steel suspension footbridge crosses the Yellowstone River at the turnaround. The bridge was completed in 1936. Include part of the span and the river in a photo to show the scale of the crossing. Continuing beyond the bridge takes you onto the longer Yellowstone River Trail, which has different end-to-end logistics.
Making the returnThe climb back is the main test: you regain roughly 1,100 feet after reaching the river.
The climb back is the main test: you regain roughly 1,100 feet after reaching the river. The route is shared with horseback riders, so give horses room on narrower sections. Pets are not allowed. The park lists this hike for spring, summer, and fall.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Yellowstone
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.
