Hiking Cascade Creek Falls from Targhee National Forest into Yellowstone National Park

Cascade Creek Falls was not a pre-planned hike during our trip to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons National Parks. We wanted a day that was nearby the RV park we were staying at, and looking around this fit the bill perfectly. The trail is accessible from a 4WD Targhee National Forest Road, and takes you from the national forest into Yellowstone National Park. Its about 3.7 miles out and back, with minimal elevation gain. For the trail map, check out AllTrails.

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Targhee National Forest

We took my dads massive truck down the unpaved road to the trailhead. The drive there was really scenic – so much so I forgot to take any photos. It takes you past Grassy Lake Reservoir and numerous designated NFS first come first serve primitive campgrounds. On our way back from the hike we also took a short detour to Tillery Lake, where my dad ventured into the water to cool off. All the lakes along the road were man-made reservoirs managed by the NFS.

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Hiking Cascade Creek Falls

The Cascade Creek Falls trail starts out in the national forest and about 0.3 miles and then you enter the Yellowstone National Park backcountry. The trail meets up with Cascade Creek shortly after this. You have two choices here: head across the creek toward some equine and hiking trails into the true backcountry OR continue on following the creek toward the terraced falls. Obviously we were not here to backpack in the backcountry, so we followed the east side of the creek.

About 0.7 mile later the trail and the creek meet up with Fall River. The trail follows the river for about 0.7 mile to terraced falls. There are of course several gorgeous lookouts and falls along the way. This river is a fisherman and a bears paradise.

The terraced falls on Fall River lived up to their name with several waterfalls and gorgeous views out into Yellowstone. Words cannot describe it as good as photos, and photos will never be as good as real life. The last piece of the trail was to hike back up and out to the car.

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Before you go

The best part about this hidden gem of a hike?? We had the trail basically to ourselves! There were two other groups on the Cascade Creek Falls trail besides us. A drastic change from the prior days of hiking throughout Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. This is definitely a bit more remote compared to all the other hikes and stops we did. With the remoteness you definitely want to bring along your bear spray, there was plenty of evidence along the trail that bears frequent the area.

The trailhead parking is minimal, with no facilities. So if you need to pee, you gotta find a good squat spot. Trust me, there are plenty of these with a great view too.

There are also no park fees associated with this hike. The hike is very near a Boyscouts of America Camp, so there are definitely the opportunity for the trail to be more crowded.

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There is so much more to Yellowstone National Park than what is featured in this blog post. Check out the National Parks Page on the website to see all the other adventures we had over our 10 days visit. These adventures include:

• Geyser Basins of Yellowstone
• Artists Point – Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
• Hiking to Ribbon Lake
• Hiking Mystic Falls from Biscuit Basin
• Boating on Lake Yellowstone
• Hiking to Natural Bridge
• Driving All of Yellowstone in 1 Day + All the fun roadside viewpoints and stops

PLUS on this trip we spent time in Grand Tetons National Park hiking and exploring.

• Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point
• Two Oceans Lake
• Grand View Point
• Hiking Taggert and Bradley Lake Loop

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