Parking
Use the pullout on Grand Loop Road about ½ mile east of Lava Creek Picnic Area; an information kiosk is at the trailhead.
Overview
About Wraith Falls Trail
Why go
- A waterfall payoff on a short, mostly gentle walk.
Heads up
- Steep, rocky steps at the finish.
- The rough scramble to the base is outside the maintained path.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Yellowstone map
Full mapElevation6,601–6,673 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
Wraith Falls Trailhead0:00 / 0:24
“You're approaching the Wraith Falls trailhead, where a short walk leads to water fanning down a sloping rock face. Allow thirty to sixty minutes for about a mile out and back, with steep, rocky steps near the viewpoint.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Lava Creek Picnic Area
- Undine Falls
- Blacktail Creek Trailhead
- Sixty Million Missing Years
- 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 Wraith Falls Trail
A short route to Wraith FallsWraith Falls Trail is an easy out-and-back on a maintained dirt path from Grand Loop Road to a…
Wraith Falls Trail is an easy out-and-back on a maintained dirt path from Grand Loop Road to a viewpoint over a 79-foot cascade on Lupine Creek. The mapped route to the viewpoint is about 0.8 miles round trip; allow 30 to 60 minutes. Some descriptions round it to a mile; the mapped line here ends at the viewpoint and leaves the separate rough scramble to the base out.
From meadow to viewpointThe path crosses sagebrush meadow and marshland before entering mixed conifer forest.
The path crosses sagebrush meadow and marshland before entering mixed conifer forest. It crosses Lupine Creek on a short bridge, then climbs over the last 245 feet on steep, rocky ground with steps. The mapped trail ends at the named viewpoint; getting down to the water is a separate, rough scramble. Turn around at the viewpoint for the maintained route.
When the falls have the most waterWraith Falls drops from Lupine Creek.
Wraith Falls drops from Lupine Creek. Spring snowmelt usually brings the strongest flow, while the amount of water later in the season can vary. The destination is a view of the cascade rather than a broad loop or a walk along the creek.
Access and bear safetyStart at the Grand Loop Road pullout about half a mile east of Lava Creek Picnic Area.
Start at the Grand Loop Road pullout about half a mile east of Lava Creek Picnic Area. There is an information kiosk at the trailhead. No reservation or activity fee is required, though park entrance fees may apply. Pets are not allowed on the trail. Grizzly bears frequent this area: hike in a group of three or more, keep the group together, and carry bear spray where you can reach it. The rocky, stepped finish makes the route inaccessible to wheelchair users.
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.
