Slough Creek Trail [CLOSED]

The path from slough to soldiers is non existent. Have to make your own trail in some kinda sketchy areas. Have to cross the river twice ( thigh high water)

Did a 21 mile out and back day hike on this trail. I hiked far enough north to reach the park boundary. before turning around. Stunning scenery for a mid-September jaunt. Why not 5 stars? The horse manure from copious amount of equine activity created several wallows of muck that I had to tread around. Erosion/ruts from horse wagons are also evident. However, not enough of an issue to deter this hike, just be aware.

Absolutely beautiful trail but did not see much wildlife in August. You have to go at least 2-3 miles before you get the amazing views.

Beautiful expansive meadows with golden and purple wildflowers. This is how I expected Yellowstone to be and more. Lots of open space with no shade so if you go midday bring plenty of hats and sunblock.

Hiked halfway in with Zoe, Camryn, Aileen, Kim and Travis. Left home at 5:45AM, but delayed by 30 min watching grizzly at headwaters of the Gallatin. Got to Slough creek too late (9AM) to see any wildlife.

Trail was lightly trafficked in late July. We hiked to the second meadow. Lots of wildflowers in bloom. My favorite was the Indian Paintbrush. The meadows were scattered with fly fisherman much like something you’d see in National Geographic or Field & Stream. Two cowboys on a wagon with restocking supplies passed us on their way to a ranch. I could only imagine what life on a ranch adjacent to Yellowstone would be like (sigh).

Mid July 2019. Walked up 4.5 miles from the campground with my family of 4. We saw 3 different adult black bears and 3 cubs either on the trail or within 20 feet of the trail. It is beautiful. I was hoping to do some fly fishing for an hour or so while the wife and kids hung out. I Did not realize that the trail is nowhere near the river except for right at the entrance to the first meadow. I had read in many fishing blogs and guidebooks to keep walking and not try to fish the area at the beginning of the meadow. After 4.5 miles and with a view of the trail ahead we realized that the trail wasn’t going anywhere near the river for at least another mile or 2, so we turned around. Pretty disappointed with where the trail is in the meadow vs the river, which would make it more beautiful in my opinion and enable people to fish without going 12 miles round trip to the area where the river and trail are close to one another (trail probably averages close to a mile away from the river in that first meadow). Posting this in hopes It helps someone else avoid our experience vs expectations.

This might be one of my favorite trails in Yellowstone simply because there aren’t too many people on it. Hike it 5.27.19. We only went to the second meadow as we got a late start. Saw lots of buffalo and elk on the meadows. Lots of waterfowl around the river and flats. Bring a good set of binoculars or a spotting scope and you could sit for hours animal watching.

Good little trail. well maintained, tons of bison droppings covering the trail. Boys had fun kicking them off the trail. Saw lots of bison, sandhill crane, geese, frogs and bear tracks. We could hear wolves howling as the day wound down but did not see them. Beautiful creek, beautiful trail.

We didn’t go too far but the river is beautiful! We did not catch any fish here but did see several big ones :)

Really enjoyed this out and back trail. Hiked to 2S6 for first night. About 9 miles, crossing into Montana. There’s a sign, pretty cool. Hiked back to 2S1 the second night. About 5 miles. Exiting the third day. The trail head and Slough Creek Rd are busy with wildlife watchers, but once on the trail, we didn’t see a single person for three days. Lots of wildlife, especially bison. In my opinion these are the best campsites in the trail. 2S6 is slightly elevated with a great view of the entire valley. 2S1 is right on the Slough Creek. Both sites have direct access to water. Bring your filter or purification tabs. Both have food storage lockers and hanging poles, and fire rings. We did not have any bear encounters, although we did see black bear and grizzly around the park. This is also prime wolf territory. Buffalo are everywhere and not shy. Our trip in late May was risky, but we were extremely lucky with the weather. Raining only at night. No bugs at all. In all, I highly recommend this trail.

We spent three days hiking along the Slough Creek Trail, the first to campsite 2S3 about five and a half miles in and then backtracking about a mile for the second night at campsite 2S2. Both had easy-to-access water sources but campsite 2S3 had a particularly impressive view of the plateau/river and I'd definitely recommend staying there. The hike to the farther campsite took a little more than two hours. The trail is fairly flat (save for the first 1/3 mile, but it's nothing crazy) and well maintained. We saw wildflowers, buffalo, deer and several different types of birds (and some horse and buggy travelers). I thought this was a popular trail but we hardly saw anyone during our three days on Slough Creek. Despite the extreme midday heat in early July and the mosquitoes/flies (plan accordingly and bring DEET), I would definitely recommend this trail for backpackers of all levels.

Beautiful and well maintained! A little challenging at first but definitely worth it.

Great hike for viewing wildlife! Encountered bears on the hike in and on the hike out.

A gorgeous trail! I highly recommend camping out here because the two campsites we stayed at are some of the most beautiful places in the park. This is a wildlife heavy section of the park so be aware. We saw everything from a skunk to a grizzly bear!

A very good tail for wildlife. We saw bisons, deer and a fox in the trail.

Awesome trail to end Yellowstone on. Much less crowded than most of the trails on the West side. Most of the trail is through sagebrush fields which allow you to see the valley around you and the mountains in the distance. I went in end of June and mosquitoes were negligible. Coming face to face with a couple bison on the trail and a juvenile grizzly slowed the progress, but were (obviously) worth it.

This was our first day in the park. A bit of an uphill at first, but levels out at the meadow. Beautiful scenery, some not new bear sign, a few buffalo. Don't drink from the river, found a deer carcass trapped under water.

A nice scenic trail. Mostly up hill at first, but nothing difficult or hard. Came across a brown, black bear just before the lake. Took plenty of photos of him, as he did not run away and was very curious of us. He made it a little difficut to get back since he stayed on the trail area.

Love Slough Creek trail. Uphill on wagon road initially, but the rest is an amble through open meadows with Slough Creek winding along the middle. Beautiful with the mountains (Beartooth?) as backdrop. A few fishermen/women, but otherwise lightly traveled. A favorite during my summer in Yellowstone.

Slough Creek is used a lot by Fly fisherman up to the ox bow in the creek. It is an old wagon road that goes all the way to a land bound ranch just north of the park. Once you get past where the fly fisherman stop it opens to a beautiful meadow, continue and you will come to a second meadow. Take your camera and take your bear spray. Yellowstone workers like going into the backcountry camping on this trail. Great Views, a must do in Yellowstone.