On Monday, we headed to Mammoth Hot Springs. Since it is a good distance from where we are staying in West Yellowstone, we had another early start.
That meant I got to enjoy another foggy morning! Who knew I would find fog so enthralling?
I’m pretty sure that this is fog, but it may have been drifting steam from one of the hot springs in the area.
By the time we arrived in Mammoth Hot Springs, the geography had changed dramatically! It was no less beautiful, though.
Our first stop was the visitor center. This bull elk was hanging out on the lawn in front of the visitor center, bugling for his does.
When we first arrived, he was lying down. I think he finally got tired of waiting for the does to show up, so he stood up and started hollering for them.
The photo below shows Mammoth Hot Springs from a distance. All that white is siliceous sinter, otherwise known as geyserite. To me, it looks like a mound of dirty snow.
And this is what it looks like close up.
We started by driving through the Upper Terrace before parking the car and walking the boardwalk of the Lower Terrace.
This pile of geyserite is still venting steam, although it is a little hard to see from this photo.
The formation shown in the photo below is what makes Mammoth Hot Springs unique. These are called travertine terraces.
This is what they look like close up.
And from further away.
After leaving Mammoth Hot Springs
We did so much after leaving Mammoth Hot Springs that I’m going to post the photos with captions and leave it at that.
Undine Falls Another picnic lunch A hike to Wraith Falls. I enjoyed the 1/2-mile hike significantly more than I enjoyed the falls!Wraith Falls The Golden Gate (the names for things here are really weird)Obsidian Cliff. I have a close-up of the cliff, but I liked this photo better.Roaring Mountain. I will never get over geysers and steam vents coming out of mountains.Terrace Springs. In the morning, the steam rising off the water is an impressive sight.Firehole Falls, accessed via Firehole Canyon Drive.Looking in the other direction from Firehole Falls. (Firehole Canyon Drive had some truly impressive views. Unfortunately, there was no place to pull over and take photos.)
Fountain Paintpots. This geyser was the most active one I’ve seen so far.This is what happens to lodgepole pines when they are immersed in the runoff from geysers.
On our way back to the campground, we experienced our first true bison traffic jam. The park rangers eventually showed up to scare the bison off the road.
There’s always at least one idiot in the crowd…
It was a great day, at least for me.
By the time we arrived back at our campsite, Greg’s normal equanimity was experiencing some tatters around the edges. Between the stress of driving on winding narrow mountain roads, walking thousands of steps, and sightseeing, he was exhausted. (I think he has also had his fill of geysers, hot springs, and steam vents to last a lifetime.)
On Friday I dragged myself out of bed at 4:30 a.m. so that we could head to Hayden Valley at dawn. Apparently, that is the best time to see the wildlife.
Oh, my, those colors!I will never get over all of the steam vents everywhere you go here.
We were very quickly overtaken by fog on our way to Hayden Valley. The air was below 30°, but the land and rivers were still warm.
At one point, five elk darted across the road in front of us. This beauty stopped to give me a look.
Greg was lucky enough to capture a photo of the buck. My phone was having trouble focusing because of the fog.
I love the way the bison own the road.
When we drew alongside this guy, we saw that he had a pine branch stuck to his forehead! He seemed completely unbothered by it.
There were plenty of wolf spotters pulled over on the road in Hayden Valley, but Greg and I decided to move on. We were pretty sure it would be nearly impossible to see anything due to the thickness of the fog. We will try to return another day at dusk and see if we have better luck viewing wildlife.
Fishing Bridge Visitor Center
We kept driving and eventually crossed Fishing Bridge and arrived at the visitor center. The exhibits there focused on all of the varieties of birds that live in Yellowstone or pass through during their migrations.
The visitor center is right on the edge of Yellowstone Lake, so we stepped outside to take a look.
The view of the lake from the visitor center is rather boring, so I used this one instead. This photo was taken a little later in the morning from a different location. Yellowstone Lake is the largest lake above 7,000 ft in the country.
Bay Bridge Marina
We kept driving and eventually arrived at the Bay Bridge Marina. We went into the office to ask for information about fishing, boat inspections, and boat tours. (If we want to do any kayaking while we are here, we need to get the kayak inspected first.)
I’m hoping that we can take a boat tour of Yellowstone Lake sometime in the coming week.
We were going to hike the Natural Bridge Trail, but we were the only ones there, and we were in grizzly country at this point. I chickened out.
The sign warning about bears recommended traveling in groups of three or more. That was enough for me!
But while we were standing at the trailhead and debating on the hike, we saw this little fellow. I have no idea what kind of bird it is, but it was beautiful.
West Thumb Geyer Basin
We kept driving and arrived at West Thumb Geyser Basin. This is another thermally active spot in Yellowstone, right on the edge of Yellowstone Lake. In fact, some of the steam vents and geysers are under the water.
Yellowstone Lake is extremely cold, but this is one area where the water is warm.It was weird to be walking along the edge of the lake with the lake on one side and hot springs and steam vents on the other.
On our way out of this area, we stopped at the Grant Village General Store to pick up some lunch. I had made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for us, but I forgot them in the refrigerator in my rush to get out in the morning.
Continental Divide
As we headed in the direction of Old Faithful, we crossed the Continental Divide. Twice.
There were a bunch of people stopped here to take pictures. Everyone was taking pictures of each other.
One of the fun things about being here has been meeting folks from all over the country.
Interestingly, we have met no one else from Pennsylvania. Most of the people seem to be from west of the Mississippi. We have seen more Canadian license plates than East Coast ones!
Kepler Cascades
Next up was the Kepler Cascades. This is another location where the photos will not do it justice.
Black Sand Basin
Black Sand Basin was a delight. I think it may have been the most active thermal location we’ve seen so far, and one of my favorites, second only to Porcelain Basin.
Between the hot springs with their boiling water and the constant geyser eruptions, it was awesome.
That geyser in the distance erupted every few minutes. And look at those gorgeous bacterial mats flowing into the creek!Looking into the depths of a hot spring pool was an eerie experience. You could see the stone walls, but the pool seemed to have no bottom.Sometimes the bacterial mats were so colorful that they reminded me of an abstract painting.
The smell of sulfur permeates the air here. Even when there is no evidence of thermal activity, you can still smell the sulfur. At times, it is so strong that I get nauseated.
Grand Prismatic
We arrived at Grand Prismatic in the afternoon, which is the best time to view it. Any earlier, and the steam rising off the surface obscures the colors. We walked the Grand Prismatic Overlook Trail so that we could see it from above.
Needless to say, it did not disappoint! Looking at all of the people standing around its edge gives you a good idea of how giant it is.
Fairy Falls
The Grand Prismatic Overlook Trail led us to the Fairy Falls Trail.
By this point, Greg and I had already done a lot of walking that day, and we were tired (an understatement if ever there was one!).
The Fairy Falls Trail was long and boring. It also made me nervous because I did not want to encounter a bear.
But this lovely falls was the reward!
Greg and I walked over 8 miles this day. By the time we got back to the campground, we were zombies. By mutual agreement, we decided to give ourselves the weekend to rest.
Meanderings & Mind Munchies 