a secret waterfall
You fell for my click bait so I will reward you with more wildfleur views! ;-)
Lupine and Arrowleaf balsamroot blanket meadows making trailside views even more appealing.
Sighhhhh You came for the secret waterfall pic though so here’s the fun little story until you find the gem at the end.
For months now my neighbor and I have been trying to coordinate our schedule to visit a different kind of hidden gem: a bookstore in a meadow by a river with a view of the Absaroka mountain range. River Arts & Books is tucked away in Roscoe, MT. It’s worth searching for, or if you are us, stopping in after a short hike to peruse the stacks for an afternoon treat.
We hopped into the truck and began to chat about our week, the birds visiting our yards, and the various plans in our future. Then, wisely, my friend interrupts to guess that I had a specific trail in mind or to suggest a few ideas of her own. That’s when I chirped, “I’m so glad you reminded me since the hike I have in mind is a secret trail that I can’t find on a map. I’m not sure you’d be up for it. I don’t know how long it is. I don’t know what kind of elevation it entails. I only know where to park and that it leads to a waterfall. So with all that info, are we brave enough to attempt?”
No beats skipped. My friend was all in. I drove us up our favorite canyon view and found the tiny sandy pull-off by the road that wasn’t nearly as hard to find as it was when originally described to me. Apparently, this waterfall hike isn’t so secret after all. The locals seem to know when it’s the perfect time to visit—when the snow melt off swells the creeks and rivers.
Photos above display the tall purple lupine and bright yellow arrowleaf balsamroot adorning trails in the west. The photo on the right also shows off a distant peak wreathed in snow.
Everyone needs a friend willing to say “let’s just give it a try” when you describe the hike you planned as “I know nothing except it leads to a waterfall, wanna check it out?”
Snow melt off cascades into a pool before continuing its path.
Not knowing the length of a trail was only brave in this moment because we didn’t want to miss the bookstore hours. However, another friend held a hunch this trail trended on the short side so I had a hint of some intel. Figuring it was less than 3 miles, we took our time admiring the wildflower meadows before meandering along the trail leading into the forest.
Shortly, I began to hear rushing water. Up a little bit and around the bend, the unmistakable gush of a waterfall came into view. We were able to step right up to the pool the waterfall fed into and practically feel the spray of the mist. The surprise in our brains synapses loomed palpable between us. We gawked in shock. A secret waterfall indeed!
We took pictures and sat down to fully honor the moment and soak up the stunning view. How unbelievably lucky we were to discover this not quite so hidden gem in less than a mile (approx. 1.2 roundtrip). After a while, fully renewed, we finally stood up and made our way back out to take photos of the wildflowers and make our way to find our next great read.
The most surprising feature of this waterfall is the canyon wall, which this photo doesn’t fully capture, but appears out of a forest without warning.