Enjoy some of the greatest views of Lower Yellowstone Falls by hiking Uncle Tom's Trail. One of Yellowstone National Park's more famous trails, the trek takes you 150 m (500 ft) down the canyon to the viewing platform, which affords unmatched views of the base of the waterfall and the chance to grasp its full might. More than 300 stairs cover the majority of the trail, which makes the descent much easier. However the steep incline and the altitude of 2,400 m (8,000 ft) can make climbing back up quite strenuous for inexperienced hikers and people with serious health conditions. Make sure to bring adequate clothing and footwear, and pace yourself carefully so you don't get exhausted. With our world travel planner, Yellowstone National Park attractions like Uncle Tom's Trail can be center stage of your vacation plans, and you can find out about other attractions like it, unlike it, near it, and miles away.
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Uncle Tom's Trail reviews
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The trail down to the canyon floor was closed in 2020, but the viewpoint is still a nice stop for an introduction to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. I have done the stairs into the canyon in... more »
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This was a nice shaded walk along a paved walkway with only a few small hills and 8 steps at the ending. It offered quiet views of the falls. more »
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Actually did not hate this place. But this trail was closed. After reading so many reviews and seeing the pictures of the staircase, the closure was a massive disappointment to say the least. I am sure park officials had good reason to close it, but disappointment nevertheless. I still believe two things can be done, I am not sure if there is an app or site that provides the updated information but this was not mentioned on the NPS Yellowstone website. Also, prompt work should be done to reopen this trail as many tourists were looking for it and it is one of the major attractions of the park. In fact, all trails leading to the brink of the upper falls were closed so whatever safety reasons there are, work should be done as soon as possible to resolve them. With that being said, if I ever get a chance to revisit this beautiful park, I would definitely cross this off my list and update the review. Furthermore, we were able to visit the artist point, brink of the lower falls and the inspiration point which made visiting the canyon/falls area worth it. I will review the other spots separately.
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It’s pity that you can’t go to lower fall due to the snow at the top. But we didn’t really see any snow for lower part of trail. Hope the staffs are willing to clean this part of trail so we can have directly access to lower waterfall. At the same time, you still can have view on upper falls.
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