The drive from Challis to Island Park, ID was easy and scenic. We chose Valley View RV Park which is thirteen miles from the west entrance to Yellowstone NP, but the drive is from Idaho thru Montana and into Wyoming to get to the park. The RV park is great and we are in a site on the back row right next to an open field and only one neighbor. There is beautiful views of the hills and Henry Lake.
We are very excited about our visit to Yellowstone and had no idea how big the park is. We spent every day driving a different section, stopping at all of the visitor centers and exhibits. It is a fascinating place. We used our first day to drive thru the areas known for wildlife. We did see a beautiful boy elk with huge antlers and his harem of six females and quite a few bison. There were also several beautiful bald eagles and osprey. We are disappointed because we really want to see a bear or moose. We drive every crazy off-shoot gravel pathway trying to discover some hidden spot, but to no avail. The park is still pretty crowded and every time there is an animal within 100 yards of the road the traffic stops completely and there are fifty people crowded around taking pictures.
He didn't even flinch when Calcite barked at him
Two bison butting heads amid Y.S. many active hydrothermal vents. No, those are not clouds but steam coming out of fissures in the ground.
The largest ravens we have ever seen. They are bigger than Zoe!
Bald Eagle head. It is the white "ping pong" ball almost center.
Skip to the pictures if you don't want to read about the geology of YS and its hydrothermal features.
This area has the most hydrothermal features anywhere in the world. Yellowstone (YS) is what it is due to volcanism. YS itself is a volcano. Beneath the ground in YS is a huge body of molten rock, magma, which remains from earlier volcanic activity. About 2 million years ago it all started with a huge volcanic eruption from the "hotspot" lurking below. The second eruption occurred 1.3 m.y.a.
but the one that shaped the park we examine today happened 640,000 years ago. This one spewed 240 cubic miles of debris. Due to the weight of this volcanic lava, ash, molten projectiles hardening into boulders, the central part of what is now the park collapsed under the weight. It formed a 30-45 mile caldera, or basin. The magmatic heat from that hotspot powered those eruptions and still powers the park's geysers, hot springs, fumaroles, and mud-pots.
The magma hotspot heats water percolating down from the surface along fractures and faults. This superheated water rises back toward the surface, collecting into larger channels that form the plumbing pipes for each hydrothermal feature found in the park.
Geysers form if the plumbing channel contains a constriction. Between eruptions, temperatures in the superheated, pressurized water beneath the constriction build up, creating steam. The steam pushes water out of the constriction, water pressure deep in the system drops immediately, and the geyser erupts.
Hot Springs are features with no plumbing constriction. Superheated water cools slightly as it reaches the surface, and is replaced by hotter water from deeper sources. Now a convection pattern is in place where hot water rises, cools and sinks. There is no constriction or steam, so no eruption.
Fumaroles are steam vents and are YS hottest surface feature. Their underground channels penetrate the hot rock below but are "dry". What little water does exist in the plumbing converts instantly to steam and escapes at the surface.
Mud-pots form when acid decomposes surrounding rock into clay. The clay mixes with water to form mud of varying consistency (depending on the amount of water) and color (depending on what acid is present and type of rock it is dissolving). The most common gas present is hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell), microorganisms use this gas to convert HS into sulfuric acid, which breaks down the rhyolite into a yellowish mud.
There is steam everywhere as we drive through the park, it is quite prehistoric looking. The steam makes taking photos difficult and they don't really capture the magnificent beauty.
The color of the hot springs depend on temperature and bacteria present. The blue color is due to short wavelengths of sunlight being refracted and all other wavelengths of light being absorbed.
Mud-pots - bubbling melted rock. You can see Peg's explanation above if you need more :)
Prism spring known for the amazing colors. Yellow color is due to water containing sulfur and water temp is 181 deg F. Dark brown, rust, and red colors are due to iron-oxide deposits in water temp below 140 deg F. Emerald green are due to algae containing chlorophyll and found in water below 133 deg F.
Sapphire pool
The colors are amazing. In the white area there are no photosynthetic organisms, only nonphotosynthetic bacteria.
Smaller geyser
Dragon's mouth spring
Opal Hot Spring
Mammoth Hot Springs. Hot water with dissolved carbon dioxide makes a solution of weak carbonic acid. The acidic solution rises through the limestone, dissolving the calcium carbonate in the rock. At the surface, the calcium carbonate is deposited in the form of travertine, a thin shell of limestone forming the terraces in the above pic.
The park is laid out beautifully with boardwalks all around all of the features. So for the remaining drives we left the dogs home and explored all of the different areas of the park. The area around Old Faithful is a whole village with a beautiful hotel, several shops and a grand-stand area for viewing the erupting geyser. We parked and walked toward the crowds just in time to see the grand display. The visitor center was fabulous and explained all of the features really well.
Old Faithful - not the biggest just the most reliable. It erupts every 40-126 minutes, ejecting 3,700 gallons of 204 deg F water every 1.5 minutes
In addition to all of the geysers and hot springs, Yellowstone has its own grand canyon, the beautiful Yellowstone Lake and lots of rivers and falls
.
Yellowstone Lake is North America's largest high altitude lake. It has 141 miles of shoreline and is 20 miles long by 14 miles wide. Its deepest spot is 410 feet at an average depth of 140 feet. August surface temp is 60 deg F, bottom temp never gets above 42 deg F. Too cold for me!
Upper Falls. The YS river carved out the Grand Canyon of YS. Softer rock eroded, yielding to the power of water.
The grand canyon of Yellowstone formed in the rock and sediments from 160,000-140,000 years ago. The multi-hued rocks of the canyon result from the hydrothermally altered rhyolite (igneous/volcanic rock) and sediments.
Gibbons Falls
But I am having the time of my life! I tried to tell Bair "back off the science" but as you can see, she didn't listen!
This made my day! How can you resist that sweet face?!?! Haha I know that there is no controlling Bair when it comes to talking about science. Remember I was there for the caravan to Crested Butte when we had to stop on the side of the road and look at rocks. I had never seen Dave Berg stop a road trip to the mountains for anything before. Miss and love you all!
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