Baring Falls is a 45-foot plunge waterfall on Baring Creek in Glacier National Park, Montana, just above the north shore of Saint Mary Lake in Glacier County. A short trail reaches it from the Sunrift Gorge parking area on Going-to-the-Sun Road.
The falls
Baring Creek drops over a rock ledge and runs only about 100 yards farther before entering Saint Mary Lake. Lidar data puts the drop at about 45 feet, at an elevation of about 4,550 feet. Earlier surveys listed 30 feet; one secondary account estimates roughly 25.
Getting there
The trailhead is at Sunrift Gorge on Going-to-the-Sun Road, 9.9 miles west of the St. Mary Entrance Station. The Park Service puts Baring Falls 0.3 mile one way from the parking area, with 50 feet of gain and 115 feet of loss on the way down to the creek. Follow the Siyeh Pass Trail south from the road, keep right where a spur heads toward Sun Point, and cross the footbridge over Baring Creek, just beyond which the falls come into view.
Summer admission to Glacier is $35 per private vehicle for seven days ($25 from November through April). Non-US residents aged 16 and older pay an extra $100 per person unless they hold an eligible Annual or America the Beautiful Pass. The park requires no vehicle reservations in 2026.
When to go
Spring and early summer are the best time to photograph Glacier's waterfalls.
On site
The first view of the falls comes from just past the footbridge. American dippers, small slate-gray birds that forage underwater, nest around the falls. Dogs are not allowed on Glacier's trails. Take extra care around water, steep drop-offs and wildlife.
History and name
The creek and the falls are named for one of the Baring brothers, London bankers who were guided on a hunting trip in the late 1880s by Joe Kipp and James Willard Schultz.
Nearby
Sunrift Gorge, where a short path from the trailhead overlooks the gorge Baring Creek plunges into, is about 0.2 mile away. Saint Mary Falls is about 1.2 miles away and Virginia Falls about 1.5 miles, both on the St. Mary Falls Trail.
Distances are straight-line.