At the end of August, we drove through Yellowstone in order to get to Beartooth Byway. I said we would be back as we wanted to see Old Faithful and the other geysers. Well, the time has arrived and this is Yellowstone Revisited.
A few days after Mama Nomad’s Birthday, we loaded up Ebony early one morning and headed towards Wyoming. We fully intended on being able to get to Yellowstone National Park and see Old Faithful with plenty of daylight. The drive there was beautiful. As we got close to the Yellowstone entrance in West Yellowstone, we began to worry that the entrance would be closed due to the fires. In case you were unaware, parts of Yellowstone and surrounding areas have been on fire since July or August of 2016. There are 4 wildfires exclusive to Yellowstone (Maple, Fawn, Buffalo and Boundary) and one that is shared between Yellowstone and Grand Teton (Berry). The one we were concerned with was the Maple Fire which started at the beginning of August and has burned over 22,000 acres by the west entrance.
There was a lot of smoke that came up over the trees just beyond the West Yellowstone city limits. We were able to enter the park without issue; although there was an active fire burning on the other side of the river that ran next to the road. We saw lots of smoke cover the area. After a brief stop to observe The Maple Fire, we continued on to the interior of the park towards the Visitor Education Center. This is where Old Faithful was located as well as a host of other geysers in the Upper Geyser Basin.
Old Faithful erupts about every 60 to 80 minutes, so we took a little time to learn about Old Faithful and the Geyser Basin in the Visitor Education Center. We learned all kinds of things that we were not aware of. Did you know Yellowstone had an active volcano? That is what produces the heat that causes all of the geysers to erupt. Did you know that the water erupting from Old Faithful is hotter than the surface boiling point? How about this. Did you know that hundreds to thousands of earthquakes happen at Yellowstone every year? Some you cannot feel and others you can. This is what allows the geysers to keep venting and not be sealed up by minerals. Really interesting stuff.
We left the Visitor Education Center and grabbed a spot on the benches in front of Old Faithful. It was sunny, comfortable temperature, minimum wind and a lot of people. It wasn’t too long before Old Faithful did what it does every hour to hour and a half. It erupted with a spectacular water show for us. This went on for many minutes as the water, steam and vapor would gush and shoot into the air. What a show.
Once Old Faithful had erupted, we went exploring the Upper Geyser Basin. They have pathways built to show you all of the geysers in the area. Word of caution – stay on the path. I am dead serious. A guy went off path earlier in the year and he fell through the ground into super heated water. For lack of a better word, he disintegrated and no remains were found or recovered. So, please, stay on the path. Because, although the ground may look solid, it could be very thin and weak in areas. Needless to say, we stayed on the path. It was between a mile and a half and two miles long (round trip). We were able to see all manner of geysers and springs, each with their own appearance and distinct behavior.
After spending about 3 hours or so in the Upper Geyser Basin, we hopped into Ebony and headed for the Midway Geyser Basin. We wanted to see one specific natural feature, The Grand Prismatic Spring. We had seen many pictures and they were all beautiful. Again, there is a path so stay on it. The path up to the Grand Prismatic Spring is about a 1/2 mile round trip. It will take you by Turquoise Pool, Opal Pool, Excelsior Geyser and lead you to the Grand Prismatic Spring, which is located at the top of the walkway.
We wound our way up to the spring and encountered a variety of formations along the way. The Grand Prismatic Spring was beautiful to see. Although, it was a little windy and it was causing the steam to blow across where we were and make it seem like we were in a pea soup fog. One thing I can definitely say, the pictures taken by the park from a helicopter (top down view) is a much better vantage point than being at ground level with it. Still, it is a sight to behold.
After the Midway Geyser Basin, we decided to head home as it was getting dark and we had a fairly long drive ahead of us. On the way out of the park, I decided to detour down a small road that seemed to go into the forest. I had been trying to find other wildlife beyond what we had seen already. About a half mile down the road, we struck gold. We happened upon an entire herd of elk. They were grazing in a field about 100 yards away. The detour was worth it.
Yellowstone is a HUGE National Park. If you want to fully explore it, with all of its features, and do so without a rush, I suggest you plan to stick around for about a week. This is the world’s first National Park and it does not disappoint. I commonly say “if you are in the area then check out (insert place here).” Well, I am changing it this time. If you enjoy the outdoors, volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, rivers, lakes and wild life, then plan a trip to Yellowstone. Safe Travels.
