The real reason for my foray into Yellowstone National Park the previous day was to eventually end up at Pine Creek Campground in the Absaroka Mountains. Here I planned to spend the hike and take on the challenging 9.5-mile hike to Pine Creek Lake the following morning. But alas, the weather turned overnight, socking in the lake with a thick fog. Unable to shake the weather after making my way around one third of the way up to the lake, I opted to turn around. It was not meant to be. But along the way, at least, I was able to see Pine Creek Falls, a multi-tiered chute a little over a mile up the trail.

Rushing down from the heights of the Absaroka Range in southern Montana, the forks of Pine Creek converge just before reaching Paradise Valley, a lovely thoroughfare between the town of Livingston and Yellowstone National Park. Here visitors can make the 3,500-foot ascent to Pine Creek Lake, a popular—though strenuous—hike…or less intrepid ones can follow the path partway, ending at the lovely Pine Creek Falls. For the latter, park at the Pine Creek Trailhead and enter the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, but turn around after the falls at 1.2 miles.

The hike

Situated just past the campground, Pine Creek Trailhead (see map) has relatively limited parking, so plan to arrive early or use the overflow lot (the trailhead for George Lake) about 1/3 mile back. The shady trailhead is set amid a small floodplain blanketed with pines, and the initial trail actually briefly descends to start. After leveling off and rising, pass the spur toward George Lake on the right, then ascend in fits and starts as the trail parallels Pine Creek.

After crossing an initial bridge over a tributary at 1/3 mile, continue east and south and traverse the main creek minutes later. Thereafter the Pine Creek Trail begins to climb again, and hikers enter the nearly million-acre Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness. Some mild ups and downs lead deeper into the shady valley, with the trail staying about 20-30 feet above the creek’s banks.

After the mile mark, hikers will pass the obscured confluence of the north and south forks of Pine Creek on the right, after which the path edges left, with the roar of cascades becoming louder and louder. At 1.2 miles, the impressive Pine Creek Falls comes into view, with a bridge over the creek offering the ideal viewing platform. Even late in the season, the flow of the roughly 100-foot waterfall is impressive.

Ambitious hikers can push on to Pine Creek Lake, while those satisfied with a 2.4-mile, relatively mild walk should turn around here. The hike to and from the falls should take about an hour to an hour and a half at a reasonable pace.