Geysers

Morning Glory Pool

We started our day at the Old Faithful Visitor Center to attempt to view as many of the predictable geysers as possible. Then we hit the boardwalks seeing Old Faithful shoot off from a distance. The day warmed up as we visited the various pools, springs, and  geysers admiring the colors from the algae and microorganisms. We passed Grand Geyser about half an hour before its 2 hour eruption time-slot. GrottoGeyser was quiet as we passed by, so we made it all the way to Morning  Glory Pool one of the prettiest around. On our return trip Grotto was erupting, we watched until it ended. The crowd had disappeared at Grand, so it had gone off. Then we could see Castle Geyser begin its 20 minute eruption and in the distance Old Faithful for a second time.

We headed to Great Fountain Geyser hoping to catch the eruption, but it had occurred about 30 minutes earlier. We explored a few of the other thermal features before heading to the Firehole Canyon Drive to see the waterfall. This was our turnaround point for the day. Next stop Fountain paintpots, one of my favorite features watching the mud gurgle. Further along the trail are pools and constantly erupting geysers.

At Midway Geyser Basin we saw the crater around Excelsior Geyser. While Excelsior doesn't erupt, over 4000 gallons of water a minute flow out of the geyser. Further up the trail is Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest spring in the park. It looks best from the air with its magnificent colors. 

Grand Prismatic Spring

After all these beautiful features Biscuit Basin was a disappointment. We headed home to Bridge Bay Campground and a great campfire talk on Lake Yellowstone. The ranger had been here for 46 summers and told us about both the early history of Fishing Bridge and the Lake as well as recent discoveries. They just recently found the deepest hole (400 feet) in the lake, but their thermometer melted after reading 350 degrees.

Elk by our campground