Visit Palisades Falls Near Bozeman, Montana

When my wife and I planned a trip to the northwest United States, we had no idea that the common theme for much of the trip would be "volcanism." Since our return, my wife has been telling people that our 28 day trip was a "volcano trip." What we discovered was that much of the scenery and many of the landscape elements we encountered had their origins in volcanic activity of some kind. This was true of a beautiful waterfall, Palisades Falls, located near Bozeman, Montana. [Note: There seems to be some disagreement about the name of the waterfall. Some sources have it as "Palisade" Falls; others have it as "Palisades" Falls. I have chosen to use "Palisades."

We probably would not have visited Palisades Falls except for my wife's cousin and her husband. Bill and Jane have lived just outside of Bozeman for several decades and have explored the area thoroughly. When we stopped to see them on the way to the Northwest, one of the day trips they took us on was to Palisade Falls. The waterfall is located in the Gallatin National Forest and is connected to the Hyalite drainage area which includes the Hyalite Canyon and reservoir. Hiking trails provide another recreational activity.

By way of background about the waterfall, an informational website informs readers that Palisades Falls is approachable by means of a hard-surface trail that is suitable for people in wheelchairs as well as for handicapped people in general. Visitors should be aware, however, that the steepest grade on the trail is 11%, the highest that can be assigned to handicapped use. Even for people without handicaps, the trail can be difficult.

The trail begins in a parking area and involves a .5 mile hike to the waterfall. The hike takes the visitor through beautiful spruce and fir trees, finally ending with a view of the 80 foot tall Palisades Falls. The source of the waterfall is a lava flow dating back to prehistoric times, although the source of the lava flow itself is not known. An obvious feature of the waterfall is the basalt hexagonal column structure over which the water falls and which is prominent on either side of the water (see the pictures that accompany this article). A dramatic example of basalt columns is Devils Tower in Wyoming.

A Wikipedia website about basalt notes that basalt is an "extrusive volcanic rock" that, if it cools slowly, forms the hexagonal (and also polygonal) columns. Again, the unanswered question is the source of the volcanic activity. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that Palisades Falls is located not all that far from Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone itself sits on a huge caldera (or volcano) and it does not take much thought to imagine not just Yellowstone but also the surrounding area being a volcanic hot spot.

Whatever the cause, Palisades Falls is a place that shows the power of nature to use a dangerous means to produce something of beauty.

Sources:

www.waterfallsmontana.com/waterfalls.aspx

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basalt