Category: Hydrothermals

Five-Geyser Day

Posted on by Joy

What an absolutely gorgeous day in the Old Faithful area. The sky is so blue it looks like God Photoshopped it! There is no wind making 50° feel much warmer. Most everything except the Visitor’s Center is closed for the season which translates into very few people and bring your own lunch. I want to check if the rangers are still noting eruption times for the most predictable geysers at the Information Desk in the VC. I’ve yet to see Castle Geyser erupt and I’m hoping today is the day. WOW, we are in luck. Old Faithful is due to erupt in two minutes give or take ten minutes. Castle Geyser is expected to erupt in 45 minutes . A beautiful day and very few people make for a quiet, relaxing stroll around Upper Geyser Basin. Thar she blows!

old-faithful-9166

Continue our geyser walk . . .

Firehole Sunrise

Posted on by Joy

The three-mile loop road known as Firehole Lake Drive is amazing in the autumn. At sunrise we see the warmth of the sun battling the cold air, low clouds, massive amounts of thermal steam, and fog. It can take hours for the sun to finally break through. During that process, we meander through an eerie, cloaked landscape that envelops us. Welcome to a Firehole sunrise.

pre-sunrise

Making our way to the lake . . .

Artist Paintpots Sojourn

Posted on by Joy

Along the Gibbon River, between Norris and Madison Junctions in Yellowstone, is the often ignored Gibbon Geyser Basin. Unless there are bison, elk, other ungulates (hoofed animals), or the occasional coyote feeding in Gibbon Meadows, people pass by this area on the way to Old Faithful or Norris Geyser Basin. The most popular and most beautiful collection of thermal features in the Gibbon Geyser Basin are found along the 1.1 mile loop trail called Artist Paintpots. We walk about 1/3 of a mile through a young lodgepole pine forest which is reestablishing itself after the 1988 fires. So let’s head out and take our time in this colorful collection of thermal features.

trailhead

Onward to beautiful colors . . .

White Porcelain at Norris Geyser Basin

Posted on by Joy

Yellowstone in winter is truly a wonderland. Quiet solitude, the result of few park visitors and the muffling effect of deep snow. Vast sparkling snow landscapes can feel disorienting and measuring snow depth in feet both define winter here. Last autumn we visited Porcelain Basin, one of two basins at Norris Geyser Basin. Today we will marvel at the basin in its winter glory–White Porcelain this time of year! Welcome to Yellowstone’s most acidic and hottest hydrothermal area and one of the most active earthquake areas in Yellowstone.

Porcelain Basin

Bundle up and let’s go