Ouzel Falls
Teton County, Wyoming
Your visit at a glance
- Waterfall height
- Not recorded
- Location
- Teton County, Wyoming
- Access status
- Partial guide: distant view from a long meadow trail; no trail to the falls and the distance to the viewing point is not stated
- The walk
- 3.5 miles to Bechler Meadows on the Bechler Meadows Trail (NPS brochure); the distance on to the viewing point is not stated
- Ground & access
- Long, mostly level forest and meadow trail with unbridged stream crossings. Bring extra shoes or sandals for fording; do not ford barefoot. Mosquitoes and biting flies can be heavy.
Ouzel Falls is a tall falls on Ouzel Creek in the Bechler area of south-west Yellowstone, seen at a distance from Bechler Meadows. From the Bechler Ranger Station Trailhead on Cave Falls Road, take the Bechler Meadows Trail north 3.5 miles to the meadows. Cross Boundary Creek and continue through the meadows to the ford of the Bechler River at their upper end. From there, look north-west to see Ouzel Falls in the next drainage. No trail to the falls themselves is described. Return the same way.
Plan your visit
Bechler Ranger Station Trailhead on Cave Falls Road, the Bechler Meadows Trail north through Bechler Meadows to the Bechler River ford at the upper end of the meadows, with a distant view north-west to Ouzel Falls
The NPS Bechler day-hike brochure gives 3.5 miles from the Bechler Ranger Station to the meadows. The view of Ouzel Falls is described at the Bechler River ford at the upper end of the meadows; the distance to that point is not stated. The brochure's 18 to 20 mile round trip is for the longer hike to Colonnade and Iris Falls.
Long, mostly level forest and meadow trail with unbridged stream crossings. Bring extra shoes or sandals for fording; do not ford barefoot. Mosquitoes and biting flies can be heavy.
Where to start
Bechler Ranger Station Trailhead on Cave Falls Road, just north of the southern park boundary.
Timing & water
Check at the Bechler Ranger Station for trail and stream conditions; the station is open daily in summer.
Before you go
Yellowstone National Park entrance pass: $35 per private vehicle, valid for seven consecutive days. Permits are not required for day hiking; overnight stays need a backcountry permit.
Visitor informationVisit sources
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
- National Park Service: Bechler Ranger Station Trailhead (9K1)
- Wikipedia: Waterfalls in Yellowstone National Park
- National Park Service: Yellowstone fees and passes
- National Park Service: Bechler Backcountry Office
- National Park Service: Day Hikes in the Bechler Area (brochure copy)
More waterfalls nearby
Within 40 straight-line miles. Road and trail distances will differ.
- Lower Colonnade FallsPartial guide: long backcountry trail with deep fords; distance from the trailhead not stated66 ft (20 m) · Teton County, WY1.4 miE
- Upper Colonnade FallsPartial guide: long backcountry trail with deep fords; distance from the trailhead not stated36 ft (11 m) · Teton County, WY1.4 miE
Iris FallsSnow and ice reported; historical route and parking gap45 ft (13.7 m) · Teton County, WY1.6 miE- Silver Scarf FallsLong national park day hike with fords; falls a short walk from the Dunanda Falls junctionTeton County, WY2.4 miW
- Dunanda FallsLong Yellowstone backcountry day hike from the Bechler Ranger Station; stream crossings that may need wadingTeton County, WY2.6 miW
- Albright FallsTeton County, WY4.6 miNE
- Ragged FallsTeton County, WY5.6 miNE
- Wahhi FallsTeton County, WY5.6 miNE
- Sluiceway FallsTeton County, WY5.6 miNE