Montana’s Many Glacier has a two-tier waterfall that most tourists walk right past

Apikuni Falls: the Many Glacier valley’s quiet reward

Most people driving into Glacier National Park’s Many Glacier area already have a destination in mind. Grinnell Glacier, Iceberg Lake, Cracker Lake.

Those trails draw the lines and hold the crowds. But there’s a short hike branching off near the road that most visitors walk right past.

It climbs hard and fast through aspen and fir, crosses a wildflower meadow, and ends at a tall two-tier waterfall dropping off a cliff face.

The name on the trailhead sign is Apikuni Falls, and the story behind it goes back further than the park itself.

The writer who helped put Glacier on the map

In the 1870s, a young writer named James Willard Schultz came west and settled among the Pikuni band of the Blackfeet Nation. They gave him the name Apikuni, often translated as “Spotted Robe.”

Schultz wrote about the region for national magazines, and his articles caught the attention of editor George Bird Grinnell, who made the trip out himself.

Their combined work helped build the case for federal protection, and in 1910, Glacier became a national park.

The falls carry Schultz’s Blackfeet name, and you may also see it spelled “Appekunny” depending on which map or sign you’re reading.

Start easy: a flat meadow with a mountain dead ahead

The trailhead sits about 1.1 miles east of the Many Glacier Hotel, with a small parking area that holds roughly a dozen cars.

From there, the first stretch walks you out into a broad, open meadow with almost no elevation change. It’s the kind of start that makes you think this will be a gentle morning.

Mount Altyn rises directly ahead, and you can spot the notch between the peaks where the trail is headed.

The falls are nowhere in sight yet, but in summer that meadow fills with lupine and asters, and the color against the gray rock sets the tone for the whole hike.

Then the trail turns and climbs without apology

After the meadow, the trail tilts sharply uphill and stays that way.

It gains several hundred feet in a short stretch, winding through shade under aspen and fir while Apikuni Creek rushes somewhere to your side. You’ll hear the water before you see much of it.

This is the section where trekking poles earn their keep. Take it slow, stop when you need to, and don’t burn everything in the first 10 minutes.

The grade is steady, not switchbacked, and the forest doesn’t open up until you’ve put in the work.

Turn around for one of the valley’s best views

Partway up, stop and look back. The Many Glacier valley spreads wide behind you, with Lake Sherburne stretching south and peaks like Mount Gould and Grinnell Point lined up in the distance.

The higher you climb, the more the valley opens up.

A lot of hikers say these views are reason enough to make the trip, even before they reach the water. The trail is headed uphill, but the scenery behind you is doing something worth paying attention to the whole way up.

Wildflowers from the meadow all the way to the tree line

Summer wildflowers don’t stop at the trailhead meadow. They follow you up through much of the climb.

Lupine and asters hold on in the lower sections, and sun-loving plants push into the open spots between trees as the trail gains elevation.

The contrast works well here, purple and yellow against gray limestone and dark green forest. Even later in the season, when early blooms have faded lower down, you’ll still find color along the upper stretches.

It’s one of the better wildflower hikes in the Many Glacier area without being famous for it.

Two tiers of water dropping off a rocky cliff face

The falls stay out of sight until the very end, which is part of what makes the finish land the way it does. The trail turns rocky and uneven near the top, and then the cliff opens up in front of you.

Apikuni Falls drops in two stages: the upper section free-falls straight off the rock face, and the lower part fans out into a cascade before smaller streams tumble below it.

The whole structure hangs off a tall cliff, and in early summer when snowmelt is still running hard, the sound carries well before you round the last bend.

Early summer hits different, but every season has something

Come in June or early July and the falls run at full volume, fed by snowmelt from the high country above. The rush is loud and the flow is heavy.

By August the pace eases, but the scene doesn’t disappear, it just changes character. Fall brings its own version: the aspen along the lower trail go gold, and the crowd thins even further than usual.

Each stretch of the season shows you a different waterfall on the same cliff. None of them is wrong.

Grizzlies live here, and they’re not rare

The Many Glacier area has one of the denser grizzly bear populations in the lower 48 states.

Bears are out and moving through most of the summer, and they get especially active during berry season, which runs from late July into September.

Rangers advise every hiker to carry bear spray and know how to use it before you hit the trail.

Making noise as you walk, especially through the forested sections, lowers the chance of surprising a bear at close range. Black bears also move through the area.

This is wildlife country in a real sense.

The final stretch is rocky and the cliff above overhangs

The approach to the base of the falls involves a short scramble over loose, uneven rock that gets slick near the water. Sturdy shoes make a difference, and hiking poles give you something to steady against.

Some people push past the marked end of the trail to get closer to the base, but the cliff above overhangs the falls, and rocks fall from it. The creek runs fast and cold year-round.

Stay well back from the water and the base of the falls. The view from the marked endpoint is the full view you came for.

A short hike that works well for many kinds of people

At roughly 1.9 miles round trip, this hike fits into a park day that includes other stops. It’s short enough to pair with a drive along the Many Glacier road or a stop at the hotel.

Older kids who can handle a sustained climb with breaks often do fine on it.

The out-and-back route is straightforward with no navigation decisions to make, and the walk down gives you those valley views again, this time facing into them.

Most days, you won’t share the trail with a lot of other people.

A few things to sort out before you leave

Glacier National Park charges an entrance fee, so factor that into your plans before you arrive.

The Many Glacier area briefly closed due to flooding in mid-2026, so check current trail conditions on the official website before your trip.

Parking at the Apikuni trailhead fits only about a dozen cars and fills early on busy days. There are no restrooms or water at the trailhead itself.

Both are back at the Many Glacier Hotel, about 1.1 miles west, so take care of that before you pull into the small lot and lace up.

Hit the Apikuni Falls Trail in Glacier National Park, Montana

The Apikuni Falls Trail starts from a small pullout on the Many Glacier Road in Glacier National Park, about 1.1 miles east of the Many Glacier Hotel in northwestern Montana.

The round trip runs roughly 1.9 miles with significant elevation gain in a short stretch. The park entrance fee applies.

No fee is charged for the trail itself. The best conditions run from late June through September, though early summer brings the heaviest waterfall flow.

Check the official website for current road and trail conditions before you go.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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