Yellowstone in pictures

     Magnificent is not a big enough word to describe this National Park and is what one would think of when the concept of National Park comes to mind. By all means put this in your bucket list high at the top. There is going to be a big boom coming to that park perhaps in my lifetime - not going to be pretty so get out there and see it while you can! The entire park is incredibly volcanically active and while I knew it was active - I did not know how active or how big.

     Although I was aware of the park size, it was not as big as I thought as a person can tour the entire park in a day including walking stops along the way. What I did not understand is the entire park is a huge hot spot capable of scalding a person to death. As  you know, it was recently discovered the magma chamber is much larger than once thought and there are new hot spots appearing all the time as the earth shifts.

     We entered from the west entrance - 1% of the park is in Idaho, 3% in Montana and the rest is in Wyoming...we did not think this signage reflected that though - what do you think?

     We stayed at a campsite outside the park to start with so we could both have showers and electricity access to power the space heater - the furnace wouldn't light. We belong to Good Sams which has an app that rates campgrounds and tells what they have. But then we switched to camping inside the National Park because it was only $12 but of course National Parks have no hookups - but that was okay because Buddy got the furnace to light - heat is good especially when it snows. Just an fyi for any campers having a gas furnace issue - turn on all your gas stove burners and let them burn a few minutes - the gas will then circulate into the furnace and the furnace will then light. We have an old furnace but it works, it is the old pilot light kind one can light by hand but it does eat up some gas. This is the dog in the snow and yes indeed it was cold.

     For us, a perfect day is around 60 but anything under 50 is a deal breaker. The first day was beautiful and we got to take lots of bison pictures including one of a calf. I just went gaga over these big beasts. They have a big body on their wooly head and I can see why so many tourist get gored each year - because the temptation to pet them runs high. These creatures are huge - don't try to pet them. There was a small car in front of us at one point and a bison seemed to take exception to the persons car - we thought there was going to be an incident as the look on the bisons face was not kind but the bison went on after staring the car down.

     Although these big bison are everywhere, they cause quite the tourist crush at every sighting. Elk are the next most seen creature - we saw a few.

           Now let's just take a look at some of the streams and other lovely things within the park.

The one below was taken while it was snowing. This is just a stream.

The one below was taken late afternoon before the storm the next day. This is one of many streams in the park.

This is Gibbon Falls and there is no picture anywhere that can do this justice as the falls do have some steam associated with them and at the site of falls it is quite cold this day. Walking down to the falls was not so cold but coming back was brutal.

     There is a considerable lake; 136 square miles with the deepest part being 390 feet deep but the average depth is 139 feet. According to some folks we spoke to, the fishing is very good here but we were told to return in September when fishing is at its best. Cutthroat trout are considered native thus regulated but there are no regulations regarding lake trout that are considered non native and invasive - the park asks anglers to take all of these they can as they are trying to rid them from the lake. Take a look at the lake with the snowy mountain in the distance.

      Not all roads are open all year so check before you go if you want to see something specific. When we first entered the park, one of the roads around the lake was closed but opened for the season while we were still there. Take all the roads as everything is worth seeing. It is not all about geysers and thermal pools - but, well, here are those. These are a fraction of what we saw there.

 Below is a glimpse of the magnitude of thermal pools here. It is as if something underneath is very angry.

 My personal favorite below is named Paint Pots. It is a gurgling mass of minerals with steam making its way through the muddy mass of minerals to deposit more with each gurgle. The colors are just lovely including the brewing storm in the sky.

 Okay, below is also way up there on my favorites list. Rhyolite stone with steam escaping from its mouth reminds me of some sort of wild sci-fi movie.

 While most of the park does not stink, this part does as it is pure sulfur coming up out of the ground and one cannot remain long here without coughing. The other places shown, while some contain enough to notice, it is not offensive - this one is very offensive and it seems to have more heat than the others - no one remains here long.

     At the north end of the park is Mammoth Hot Springs - do not miss this! This part is geologically different than any other part of the park. This small part has limestone and is a "not well understood" part of the park. At this time it is thought that while all of the park was created by volcanic actions, this part has undergone some sort of infusion from gurgling limestone infused water - but it is unclear where the limestone water is coming from. However, it makes for more interesting displays that are very different from all the rest.

      There is a small town at the base of this hill. The volcanic activity that went on here is obvious on the sides of this crater and the yellowish limestone infused water is in the foreground.

     It was on the way to Mammoth Hot Springs we saw a bear - we saw only one. We had heard all the stories of bears in the parks and expected them to be as common as bison - no they are not but when you see one, wow. There is always a lag between "BEAR!!" and when one can find and be able to use ones camera. There was road work going on, traffic was paused and this fella came up over the bank and crossed just behind the truck. I got to see his face but not capture it.

     Of all the enjoyable moments and things seen it was one not on the map I most enjoyed. This one is called simply Yellowstone Falls. There was a tour bus load of Asian folks who spoke very little English who were approaching the falls behind me and exclaiming at the beauty of the park to each other before even seeing the falls - I was photographing the falls, saw a couple of the ladies exclaiming and taking pictures, smiled broadly and motioned for them to come over - the joy bubbled over as they exclaimed at the beauty of this natural site. There is something about watching the joy of someone see something so lovely for the first time that just warms the heart. I ended up taking their picture with their camera using that universal gesturing to ask if they wanted a picture - they were overwhelmed by the beauty of the place. So was I.

     There is no topping that.

     We went to Old Faithful - this was not what we thought. I know Old Faithful is not what it used to be as it has become less faithful and less powerful in recent years but we saw it anyway. Eruptions happen every 60 to 90 minutes and there are suggested eruption times posted at the Visitors Center there. At the presumed time we sat with the crowd and waited.

Even the crows danced and waited.

     It was a cold day. We waited. And then it came.

     Tip - put your camera in a plastic bag or wrap it up. The slash from the geyser will soak your camera if you are on this boardwalk. The height of the eruption was not as high as we thought it would be. Personally, we both liked some of the smaller geysers in the park better because they continually erupt.

      What surprised me to see was flowers growing next to the hot sulfurous water. Nature is amazing.

Below is a small cascade falls

     This is the very first National Park and the reason it has that status is quite obvious. While not so obviously diverse in trees since it is an sub alpine forest at almost 8,000 feet above sea level, it is very diverse in animal life and microscopic life. In addition to the animals we saw, you may be able to see wolves, antelope, coyotes, mountain goats and sheep, two kinds of deer and lynx. There are not many back country hiking trails because of the thermal risk - I wondered how the bison escaped injury or death from the unexpected encounters from the thermal pools but that was later answered in that each year there are bison fatally injured by unexpected thermal pool encounters. This is not an area to off boardwalk hike as the ground is not always as solid as it may appear. It is a beautiful place of wonder.
     After 2 months of traveling and living out of just 14 feet of space, we are headed home. Our next stop is South Dakota - Sturgis, Mount Rushmore, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave and the Badlands.
     We left Yellowstone at the same time this train was headed out.

     Always good to see a train. And that's it for Yellowstone - the crown jewel of our National Parks.

Craters of the Moon National Monument Idaho

If you are near Yellowstone or are interested in how the volcano in Hawaii looks, go here. This is 400 square miles of nothing but lava rock. There are very few lava bombs, just lava flow but very deep. There are tunnels made by lava tubes and big old vents.

The walk out onto the lava field reveals how big this was. For the most part this was a rift eruption, not a cone blast thus not so many bombs. The lava rock is, to me, unremarkable in that it is simply volcanic rock that has now weathered. I have to say it is not that easy to walk on but this is very much like walking on some of the lava fields in Hawaii.

 The gurgle flow is still very obvious today 2000 years after the eruption. I don't know about you but volcanic activity is not what I thought about when thinking of Idaho. Turns out Idaho has very fertile land but also very rocky.

 As you can see, weathering and erosion has taken place so that grass and flowers grow within the lava field.

 This is the backside of the visitors center (below) that shows the solar panels used here, there is a dormitory off to the side that houses geologists and rangers studying the area. This is about 200 miles west of Yellowstone and yes the geology all mixed together in regard to hot spots and magma.

 Yep, there's Little Dog taking a walk. This little half mile path is paved, handicapped accessible and the only one she was allowed on in the park. She's loving it.

     Much like Hawaii, the rock is basaltic but this rock has had time to weather bringing out all the colors from the oxidation.

      Flowers. Wherever there is a crack in the rock and weathering has taken place to capture a wee bit of soil, there are flowers. It is a beautiful planet.

     The flower below is called Indian Paintbrush and this picture does not do the flower justice as the color just pops in person.

     Take a look at the holes in the rock - caused by boiling. The boiling lava cooled into solid rock.

     I have seen and been in the Thurston Lava Tube on the Big Island of Hawaii - all the way to the end - but, this lava tube is much different and much much bigger. A lava tube forms by hot lava exiting and the outside of the drainage being cooled and becoming solid as the hot lava at the middle of the flow remaining hot thus continuing to run and creating an empty tube as it flows out. In Hawaii the tube was fairly smooth and easy to walk because of the reasonably quick exit of lava from the tube. This one was not easy to walk but it was huge.Buddy is standing by the lava tube aka tunnel to give scale to the picture.

    Take a look at the algae growing on the walls of the lava rock. Nature takes over no matter how harsh the environment.
 As we went down into the lava tube/tunnel/cave, there was a pigeon (below).

 There are 5 "caves" along the way. These are completely unimproved and at your own risk. What these really are are collapsed lava tubes that form a pocket called a cave. Some of these have slight seepage of water but most are dry. The one below had some ice.

      Below is Beauty Cave. Only Buddy could enter this one - the dog stayed back at camp and I could not enter. As most of you know I suffer from severe arthritis and while I don't allow it to stop me and it is amazing I can do the things I do, there is a price to pay and there are things I cannot do any longer. The terrain here is too rugged for me, my ankle no longer turns that way and I did not want to risk injuring it considering are next stop is Yellowstone. Beauty Cave is more smooth bottomed.

      Although very thankful for what I can still do, it surely hurts to sit it out. There I am peering into the cave I cannot enter.Friends, do all you can while you can - you never know when the ability to do stuff may be taken away from you - enjoy it while you can!

     Craters is near Arco Idaho - a few words about Arco and Idaho...Arco was the first place in America to be lit by nuclear power; this happened July 17, 1955. If you are into the history of nuclear power in this country please look up Arco and follow the links. There is a 890 square mile complex there in Idaho (Idaho National Laboratory) that has all kinds of projects going on. For me, it's a little spooky - I like technology but am not fond of the consequences when things go bad. I know others will disagree but nuclear power seems to be more than we are yet able to control properly. I think it's a good idea but needs much more development before risking lives...unfortunately, globally the power is being harnessed and we are all suffering the consequences like the disaster in Japan and of course Chernobyl. But if you are fascinated by this, Arco is the place to go to look at all of it. Arco is a small, dying town and the business or lack there of reflect the diminishing population. I will say the RV camp there had wonderful showers - best we have had.

 A storm came up in the distance and the rain came. A storm is such a beautiful thing.

     We left here going to Yellowstone - if you are in the area and think Idaho is just about potatoes, think again - there is a great rift in Idaho and there are Native American stories confirming the eruption here in Idaho creating Craters of the Moon landscape - just when you think the earth is still under your feet - think again! 

     I thought I would see more trains out here in the west but so far have seen very few. This is one sitting on the tracks not far from Arco. I leave you with the picture of the train - I just love a train.