Yellowstone features dramatic canyons, alpine rivers, lush forests, hot springs and gushing geysers, including its most famous, Old Faithful. It's also home to hundreds of animal species, including bears, wolves, bison, elk and antelope. Yellowstone National Park has been designated as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of North America. It is truly a unique experience and below are the areas of the park that we loved the most.
YouTube Video of Yellowstone National Park
Old Faithful
Old Faithful geyser was discovered in 1870 by the Washburn Expedition. Old Faithful was named for its frequent eruptions which are more than a million since Yellowstone became the world’s first national park in 1872. Old Faithful eruptions can range from 60-110 minutes. Visitors can check for posted prediction times in the Old Faithful area visitor areas.
It can be a little frustrating waiting for Old Faithful to erupt so to make the wait more fun, the entire crowd joined in on "the wave".
Mammoth Hot Springs
Hot water ascends through ancient limestone deposits. The result is a landscape of terraces sculpted by travertine limestone. Water spills over the colorfully streaked terraces as hot gases are stored underneath the surface. Water seeps down into the ground, meeting with these gases and the gases are dissolved in the hot water to form an acid solution. The hot and acidic solution dissolves great quantities the limestone as it works up through the rock to the surface. Some of the carbon dioxide escapes from the solution once exposed to the air. As this happens, limestone no longer remains in solution and it is deposited, resulting in the terraces. Flowing waters spill over the colorfully streaked terraces and results in a gentle waterfall appearance.
West Thumb Geyser Basin of Lake Yellowstone
The West Thumb Geyser Basin is the largest geyser basin on the shores of Yellowstone Lake. The heat source of the thermal features in this location is thought to be relatively close to the surface.
Norris Geyser Basin
Yellowstone's hottest geyser basin is Norris Geyser Basin. A research drill hole at the basin found a temperature of 459 degrees F.
Grand Prismatic Spring
Grand Prismatic Spring is Yellowstone's largest single hot spring and the world's third largest hot spring. The enormous pool is not only huge; it's colorful and has the color of the rainbow. The pictures of the hot spring from above is not what is seen in person. There is a walkway that allows one to see the Prismatic Spring from the side angle.
Prismatic Spring from above.
The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
There's not a lot on information about how the canyon was created except that it is an erosional feature rather than the result of glaciation. After the Yellowstone Caldera eruption of about 600,000 years ago, the area was covered by a series of lava flows. The canyon was probably the result of uplift and faulting which allowed erosion at an accelerated rate.
Explore the quirky adventures and misadventures as I take you on a journey of the United States National Parks. These journeys inspired me to explore even more about the history of the United States, the good, the bad and the ugly. These journeys are encouragements to explore, or re-examine these beautiful lands. From mountain roads with hairpin turns to stunning seaside escapes to exploring good old American history, these areamazing journeys to take in this lifetime.
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