Yellowstone’s Grand Loop - The Most Scenic Drives in America: 120 Spectacular Road Trips - page 335

of the thunderous 308-foot Lower Falls. For an unsurpassed view down the center of the
glisteningyellowcanyonitself,hikethetrailordrivealongSouthRimRoadtoArtistPoint.
On the opposite side of the river, a one-way road from Canyon Village leads to Inspiration
Point for a final glimpse of the Lower Falls.
14. Mt. Washburn
If you park the car at the Dunraven Pass picnic area and hike three miles to the summit
of Mt. Washburn—through woods of whitebark pine and blossoming tundra—your reward
will be a grand view of the section one just traversed. In fact, this 10,243-foot remnant of a
50-million-year-old volcano—one of many that ring the caldera—offers a panoramic view
of virtually the entire park.
Wildflowers border the trail in summer, and pausing to catch your breath on the way
up, you may well see a bighorn sheep waiting patiently for you to pass by before continu-
ing slowly on its regal way.
15. Tower Fall
Meadows of sagebrush spotted with bright yellow monkeyflower border this last leg of the
drive as it swings by the graceful 132-foot cataract of Tower Fall, the nearby Roosevelt
Lodge,andthePetrifiedTree,afossilizedredwoodburiedbyvolcanicashsome50million
years ago when they were common throughout the area. The road then arcs west across
Blacktail Deer Plateau, closing this captivating loop where it began, at Mammoth Hot
Springs.