Pic: Hey, that’s the name of the park! Yellow stone in the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone NP, WY
One pulled pork sandwich and one cone of Wilcoxson’s Rocky Road devoured, I headed for the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River. Viewpoints dot both sides of the stunning gorge, but dinner in Canyon Village started me on the North Rim.
The first trail I found, Brink of Lower Falls, happened to be the highlight of the evening. I was skeptical of its 250 feet of switchbacks after my non-trivial morning, but standing next to millions of gallons of water plunging into the yellow cliffs 300 feet below was a worthy reward.
Vid: A lot of water falling a long way. Check out the leftover snow in the shadows on the north-facing side of the canyon. Brink of Lower Falls, Yellowstone NP, WY
Remember Thomas Moran? One of his most famous paintings is said to come from a sketch Moran made at what is now called Artist Point. That story is apparently apocryphal but the name and the splendor of the view remain.
As the summer sun finally gave up and sank to the west, I arrived at my last stop: Uncle Tom’s Trail. I knew it involved stairs and went down to a view of the waterfall. I also knew that darkness was falling quickly and that I was solo in grizzly country. A guy in the parking lot saw my hesitation and offered this advice: “Eh, you can probably make it. Especially if you have a flashlight.”
I followed the trail down bit by bit, passed a couple on their way back (“Someone doing this even later than us — nice!”), and came to a sign declaring that the last bit was very steep and that returning would be difficult. Challenge accepted.
I enjoyed Lower Falls in the last light of the evening — alone at a popular spot in the most famous park in the world — then trudged five hundred feet back up the stairs and switchbacks to the parking lot. My feet ached from the 10+ mile, 2200+’ day, but at least there was no one on the road at this hour. I zipped through dark forests of lodgepole pine blasting Tool’s Undertow.
I was glad to have a reserved campsite waiting for me. It was nearly midnight by the time I pitched the tent, crawled inside, and crashed.
Danger Beyond This Point 