Montana is one of our favorite states to visit and on a trip to Bozeman last summer we hiked to the beautiful Palisade Falls.
Getting to Palisade Falls
Palisade Falls is located in Hyalite Canyon past the Hyalite Reservoir. It is about a 45 minute drive from Bozeman because you have to follow a twisty canyon road for much of the drive.
When we went in the summer of 2020 part of the road was under construction and an alternate one-way path had to be taken. It happened to be raining that day and we probably would not have made it all the way up if we hadn’t been in our Subaru.
To get there take 19th street out of Bozeman and then get on to Hyalite Canyon Road. You will follow it all the way into the canyon until you reach a fork in the road where you will stay left until you reach the Palisade Falls parking lot. The parking lot is fairly big, and given the fact that it was raining I think we were the only cars there.
Hiking to Palisade Falls
The hike to the falls is a fairly easy hike. It is a little over one mile round trip. We did it in the rain and so decided to take Lucy in her stroller to give her a cover. The trail is paved most of the way. It wasn’t easy to do with the stroller, but it was possible.
On the way up to the falls you do gain about 250 feet of elevation, so there are some steeper parts. I was able to push the stroller up these parts without too much trouble. We were using our travel stroller with small wheels, if we had our normal stroller with us it would have been much easier.
You will first be able to see the falls while you are heading up the last part of the trail. Then you will reach a small bridge which crosses the stream. At that point you can stop or you can choose to head up further across the rocks to get nearer the falls.
Palisade Falls is an impressive 80 ft waterfall that drops pretty much straight down from the cliff above. While you are viewing the falls you will get misted, which is nice if it is sunny and makes no difference if it is raining.
Sum Up
Even in the rain the hike to Palisade Falls was a lot of fun. It is not very difficult and we would recommend it to anyone visiting the Bozeman areas, especially with kids. There is a picnic area and pit toilets located at the trail head.
