Distance: 1.0 miles / 1.6 km

The Artists’ Paintpots Trail in Yellowstone National Park is a short and easy day hike that leads to a small, one-of-a-kind thermal area where visitors can see a variety of colorful mud pots, springs, and one named geyser around the loop at the end—known as the Blood Geyser!

That said, the Artists’ Paintpots Trail is most similar in size to the short boardwalk through the Black Sand Basin near Old Faithful to the south, but it is most comparable to the Norris Geyser Basin in terms of the thermal features encountered.

What I personally think sets the Artists’ Paintpots Trail apart is that it is not nearly as busy as countless other thermal areas across Yellowstone. However, I always recommend visiting first thing in the morning, which is the best way to avoid the crowds on any boardwalk trail in Yellowstone National Park!

Artists Paintpots Trail Yellowstone National Park Wyoming — Artists’ Paintpots Trail

Artists’ Paintpots Trailhead Parking

Parking for the Artists’ Paintpots Trail is located in a paved parking lot off Grand Loop Road, between the Norris Junction to the north and the Madison Junction to the south.

Now, while the Artists’ Paintpots Trail is not nearly as busy as other thermal areas across Yellowstone, it doesn’t take many cars to fill the small lot, which is why parking can be challenging from about mid-morning and throughout much of the day during the busy summer travel season.

Google Maps Directions: Artists’ Paintpots Trailhead

Hiking Checklist - Yellowstone–Tetons

Here is a complete list of must-have things that you will want for any hike in the Yellowstone–Teton area.

Hiking the Artists’ Paintpots Trail

The Artists’ Paintpots Trail begins on a boardwalk at the trailhead, but this quickly ends just a few steps into the hike, at which point the next 0.35 miles (0.6 km) to the start of the loop follow a normal trail surface.

The nice thing about the Artists’ Paintpots Trail is that the vast majority of the hike follows a flat and easy path, with the exception of the far southern end of the loop that climbs a short hill.

Regardless of the trail’s relatively short length, don’t get complacent, and always hike with bear spray, especially if you plan to arrive early in the morning and be one of the first ones on the trail.

These power lines are a nice mental halfway checkpoint between the trailhead and the start of the loop.

Just before the start of the Artists’ Paintpots Loop, the trail transitions onto another boardwalk as it approaches the thermal area.

Artists’ Paintpots Loop Trail

After only 0.35 miles (0.6 km), the Artists’ Paintpot Trail splits into a 0.3-mile (0.5 km) loop around the entire thermal area.

In my opinion, some of the best things to see are located along the upper half of the loop straight ahead.

That said, I don’t believe it makes much of a difference which direction you choose to go, but if accessibility is a concern, the path to the right climbs to the upper half on a more gradual switchback, while the path to the left ascends a number of stairs to reach the same area.

For no particular reason, I chose to go left in the clockwise direction around the loop.

Artists Paintpots Hike Yellowstone National Park Wyoming — Artists’ Paintpots Loop Trail

Blood Geyser

The Blood Geyser is the only named geyser on the Artists’ Paintpots Trail.

Best of all, it’s a very active geyser, meaning it doesn’t take much effort to see it erupt, much like the Imperial Geyser past Fairy Falls.

This is where the stairs begin on the southeastern side of the loop, climbing around 55 ft. (16.8 m) in just over 0.1 miles (0.2 km) to the next viewpoint.

This north-facing overlook is arguably the best viewpoint on the entire Artists’ Paintpots Trail!

On the upper half of the Artists’ Paintpots Loop, the main trail passes several side trails on the left side that lead to better viewpoints of the paintpots along this stretch.

These side trails are the final two viewpoints before the Artists’ Paintpots Trail begins its descent back to the start of the loop.

This is the beginning of the descent on the southwestern side of the loop.

This switchback is what I previously described as the "more gradual" route to the upper half of the Artists’ Paintpots Loop—or at least it’s a little more spread out than the stairs.