Bison, Bears, and Hikes, Oh My!
By Lyndsi Watson
Fairy Falls
Living in Rexburg, Idaho may not seem all that exciting. There is a Wal-Mart and a theater, but it lacks the excitement of big cities. However, this is the best part about Rexburg; it has just enough stores to supply toilet paper to all the college students and is surrounded by natural attractions like West Yellowstone. West Yellowstone is only two hours away from Rexburg, and whether you’ve been there once or once every month, there is always something new to discover on every visit.
Most visitors to West Yellowstone never step out of their cars or off the boardwalks. They simply drive through the park watching for bison in the meadows and stopping to watch Old Faithful erupt. These visitors are missing half of the adventures West Yellowstone offers. Among these missed adventures are hikes to hidden waterfalls like Fairy Falls.
Between Old Faithful and the Fountain Paint Pot, Fairy Falls is almost always skipped over by visitors. Visitors miss out on a waterfall that shoots off from the edge of the cliff before tumbling down almost 200 feet. A small pool at the bottom of the waterfall offers a peaceful and shallow spot to dangle your feet in. Since it is between two major attractions, there are few tourists on the hike; it’s the perfect place to escape crowds.
Fairy Falls is five miles long, round trip. It is an easy hike that gains little elevation. Beginning on an old dirt road, hikers walk past some blue geyser holes and behind the Midway Geyser Basin. From the hiking trail, you can see crowds of tourists walking through Midway Geyser Basin, but you have your own private viewing area. Blue steam rises from the geysers as tourists walk through it like silhouettes walking on water and through mist. After a mile on the old road, the trail turns left into the forest. Since the trees were destroyed by the 1988 fire, new pine trees are not quite tall enough to shade the trail. Because of this, it is best to do the hike in the morning or early afternoon before it gets too hot later on in the day. The hike is open through the summer, but the waterfall can be seen at its fullest during the early summer.
Once you arrive at the waterfall, there are rocks to sit down on to rest and enjoy the view of the waterfall cascading down (Carter).
Directions:
Enter West Yellowstone through the West Entrance
Turn right (south) at Madison Junction
Continue south on the road. About a mile past the Fountain Paint Pot, there will be a sign on the right for Fairy Falls
Entrance Fees:
$25/car – pass good for 7 days to both Yellowstone and Grant Teton National Park
$80 for a year pass
The park sometimes offers free weekends
Needed Supplies:
Water
Bug Spray
Works Cited
Carter, Tom. “Hike Fairy Falls Trail in Yellowstone National Park.” YellowstonePark.com. Web. 7 Nov 2009.
Gourley, Bruce. “UnionFalls.” Yellowstone’s Waterfalls. 1997. Web. 7 Nov 2009.
Most visitors to West Yellowstone never step out of their cars or off the boardwalks. They simply drive through the park watching for bison in the meadows and stopping to watch Old Faithful erupt. These visitors are missing half of the adventures West Yellowstone offers. Among these missed adventures are hikes to hidden waterfalls like Fairy Falls.
Between Old Faithful and the Fountain Paint Pot, Fairy Falls is almost always skipped over by visitors. Visitors miss out on a waterfall that shoots off from the edge of the cliff before tumbling down almost 200 feet. A small pool at the bottom of the waterfall offers a peaceful and shallow spot to dangle your feet in. Since it is between two major attractions, there are few tourists on the hike; it’s the perfect place to escape crowds.
Fairy Falls is five miles long, round trip. It is an easy hike that gains little elevation. Beginning on an old dirt road, hikers walk past some blue geyser holes and behind the Midway Geyser Basin. From the hiking trail, you can see crowds of tourists walking through Midway Geyser Basin, but you have your own private viewing area. Blue steam rises from the geysers as tourists walk through it like silhouettes walking on water and through mist. After a mile on the old road, the trail turns left into the forest. Since the trees were destroyed by the 1988 fire, new pine trees are not quite tall enough to shade the trail. Because of this, it is best to do the hike in the morning or early afternoon before it gets too hot later on in the day. The hike is open through the summer, but the waterfall can be seen at its fullest during the early summer.
Once you arrive at the waterfall, there are rocks to sit down on to rest and enjoy the view of the waterfall cascading down (Carter).
Directions:
Enter West Yellowstone through the West Entrance
Turn right (south) at Madison Junction
Continue south on the road. About a mile past the Fountain Paint Pot, there will be a sign on the right for Fairy Falls
Entrance Fees:
$25/car – pass good for 7 days to both Yellowstone and Grant Teton National Park
$80 for a year pass
The park sometimes offers free weekends
Needed Supplies:
Water
Bug Spray
Works Cited
Carter, Tom. “Hike Fairy Falls Trail in Yellowstone National Park.” YellowstonePark.com. Web. 7 Nov 2009.
Gourley, Bruce. “UnionFalls.” Yellowstone’s Waterfalls. 1997. Web. 7 Nov 2009.
