Photo Gallery: Backpacking Yellowstone’s Bechler Canyon

By Michael Lanza

I wade slowly into the natural pool known as Mr. Bubble, deep in the backcountry of Yellowstone National Park, feeling the swirling blend of hot water from the natural hot springs pouring into one corner of the pool, and the cold creek water entering from another corner. I lower myself to a sitting position, chest-deep, and crab crawl to find a spot with a perfect, hot-tub water temperature—and plant myself there for a long time.

And I’m thinking: This is quite a sweet treat on a wilderness backpacking trip. I could get used to this.

Our visit to Mr. Bubble came on the second afternoon of a five-day, roughly 55-mile backpacking trip through Bechler Canyon in mid-September, the very tail end of summer, which happens to be a good time to backpack in this corner of Yellowstone. I definitely wanted to hike the Bechler after the notorious mosquito season of early to mid-summer, when dense clouds of hangry skeeters (and I do mean “hangry”) rise from the boggy Bechler Meadows and make the lives of any blood-filled creatures who happen to be here then a misery.


Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Join The Big Outside to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Click here for my e-books to classic backpacking trips. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip.


A hiker in Shoshone Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park.
Jeff Wilhelm hiking in Shoshone Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park.

This trip had been on my “I’m intrigued and want to do it” list for several years for a few reasons. One is the abundance of thunderous waterfalls and cascades along the hike, created by the geology of the region and the huge winter snowpack that feeds the creeks and springs draining the plateau in the southwest corner of Yellowstone. The Bechler River is also a beauty, varying in character from a gentle, quiet, tree-lined waterway with world-class trout fishing to a raging torrent where some cascades tumble for hundreds of feet. (And the fords along the Bechler can be deep, frigid, and a bit adventurous.)

Another motivation was to explore the Shoshone Geyser Basin, the largest backcountry geyser basin in the park—imagine having Old Faithful and the Upper Geyser Basin almost entirely to yourself.

Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up now for my FREE email newsletter.

Backpackers soaking in the hot springs-fed Mr. Bubble pool in the backcountry of Yellowstone National Park.
Backpackers soaking in the hot springs-fed Mr. Bubble pool in Yellowstone.

And the last reason was, of course, the famous Mr. Bubble natural pool, where hot water erupting from the earth—you can actually see the water boiling up from the ground just several feet away, and bubbles of heated air constantly boiling near the middle of the Mr. Bubble pool—mixes with the cold water of the Ferris Fork creek to create a wide, hot pool for soaking. We ran into a few other parties of backpackers during our lengthy soak in Mr. Bubble, where it’s not unusual for hikers to linger for hours (especially those who have the good luck of scoring a backcountry campsite nearby).

The gallery below features some of my photos from backpacking Yellowstone’s Bechler Canyon. Scroll below the gallery for the link to my story about this trip, which includes my expert tips on how to take it yourself.

A backcountry permit is required for overnight camping in Yellowstone’s backcountry. Bechler Canyon is popular, so reserve a backcountry permit in advance at recreation.gov/permits/4675323. For the best chance of getting a permit for popular backpacking trips like Bechler Canyon, enter the the Early Access Lottery, which runs from March 1 through March 20. General reservations open beginning April 26.

I can help you plan this or any other trip you read about at my blog. Find out more here.

See my feature story about this trip “In Hot (and Cold) Water: Backpacking Yellowstone’s Bechler Canyon”—which, like many stories about trips at The Big Outside, includes my detailed tips on planning this trip and requires a paid membership to read in full.

See also my stories “The Ultimate Family Tour of Yellowstone” and “The 10 Best Hikes in Yellowstone,” and all stories about Yellowstone National Park at The Big Outside.

The Big Outside helps you find the best adventures.
Join now to read ALL stories and get a free e-book!

Previous

The 5 Southwest Backpacking Trips You Should Do First

Training For a Big Hike or Mountain Climb

Next

Leave a Reply to Valerie Bernard Cancel reply

4 thoughts on “Photo Gallery: Backpacking Yellowstone’s Bechler Canyon”

  1. Hey,
    Thanks for posting about this hike. I did this a number of years ago with my husband and daughter, who was the backcountry LE ranger at Bechler at the time. We hiked from Old Faithful to Bechler over several days. Since we were hiking with our daughter while she was working, we were able to stay at the ranger cabin at Three Rivers. Which was a treat! I loved seeing your pictures that reminded me of our fun hike and of the mosquitoes! Of course, my daughter said the mosquitoes were nothing compared to early summer. Glad we missed that. Mr. Bubble was great!

    Cheers,
    Valerie Bernard

    Reply
  2. Hey Michael,

    great write-up and photos! I visited this lovely slice of paradise a couple of months ago. Its a splendid place indeed.
    How were the mosquitoes when you went? They were fierce around mid August.

    Happy trails!
    Mitch Stevens
    Southwest Discoveries

    Reply
    • Hi Mitch,

      We saw almost no mosquitoes in mid-September, with sunny weather and temps in the 50s and 60s daytime, 30s at night, for most of the trip, and rain on the last afternoon and following morning as we finished. I’ve heard repeatedly about how thick the skeeters are all summer, so I knew that September-October are the months to go there. Thanks for the comment.

      Reply