Lone
Star Geyser, Lone Star Geyser Basin. The Lone Star basin is Yellowstone's
smallest geyser basin, about 10 geysers, most of them small. OK,
there are areas with maybe one geyser, but they aren't usually called "geyser
basins". Lone Star isn't erupting in this shot, but the nine foot
tall cone is still impressive. The cone is made of a mineral called
geyserite, or sinter, which is a form of silica deposited very slowly by
the hot water. It does erupt about every three hours to a height
of 45 feet. Actually it has a series of short (minor) and long (major)
eruptions, and ends it off with a steam phase about every three hours.
Geysers that have a series of eruptions separated by a relatively long
quiet phase are called cyclic geysers. Cyclic geysers don't necessarily
have to have the major and minor eruptions or the steam phase, just clusters
of eruptions separated by a longer quiet period. There is a log book
nearby where hikers can record what Lone Star is doing while they were
there. This can be helpful to the next hiker if they are interested
in seeing Lone Star erupt.. The Lone Star basin is about five miles
upstream from Old Faithful, and about a 2 1/2 mile walk from the road over
a wide paved trail that used to be a road.
Minuteman
Geyser, Shoshone Geyser Basin. Minuteman is another very active cyclic
geyser, erupting to 40 feet high. Shoshone is one of Yellowstone's
major geyser basins, but can only be reached by walking 8 1/2 miles one
way. Because of this, there are no crowds at Shoshone. You
can get a taste of what Yellowstone might have been like in the early days.
I was the only person there during this visit of about three hours.
There are also no boardwalks, so be very careful if you visit. Hot
springs can have thin shelves of sinter along their edges that can break
way if you stand on them, and plunge you into boiling water. The
book Death in Yellowstone has a very extensive and graphic description
of a man who was scalded to death in this geyser basin. If you are
not convinced that being boiled alive would be a very nasty death, read
it. Even a minor burn would be really bad if you had an eight mile
hike back out. And, being alone in the wilderness is pretty stupid
too.
By the way, the Yellowstone Association is a good place to buy Yellowstone books and videos, it being a non-profit thingy and all. The profits benefit the park supposedly, rather than going into some billionaire's pocket.
A
hot spring at Shoshone Basin, possibly Coral Pool. Notice the sinter
covered tree in the pool. The blue color indicates a lack of hot
spring algae, which means the water is very hot, probably over 167F.
More
hot springs at Shoshone. I believe that the farther one is Boiling
Cauldron.
Lake
Yellowstone at sunset. Those are the Red Mountains in the background.
If you look closely you can see a couple of steam columns rising from the
West Thumb Geyser Basin on the shore across the bay.
Pink
Cone Geyser, in the Lower Geyser Basin, along the Firehole Lake Drive.
Although you can't tell from this garish backlit picture, the sinter cone
of this geyser, and the sinter deposited by several nearby springs, is
pink because of traces of manganese oxide in the sinter.
This
is the Fountain Paint Pot, in the Lower Geyser Basin. Fountain Paint
Pot is an example of a mud pot. Only colorful ones get to be paint
pots. In a mud pot steam rises through a basin of mud. Usually
there is no excess water to run off, and the water is ground water, maybe
a bit of condensed steam. Because of this the thickness of the mud
changes along with seasonal changes in the water table. When the
mud is thick (usually late summer and fall) it is fun to watch the steam
bubbles break in the mud sort of slow motion and spatter the mud around.
Fountain Paint Pot is a must see area. There are an amazing variety
of thermal features in a small area, a very easy boardwalk through them,
and an informative guide available at the start of the trail. Get
the guide, it is always nice to know what you are looking at. You
can even return the guide after you use it if you don't have the fifty
cents or whatever it is that it costs.
Red
Spouter, Lower Geyser Basin, Fountain Paint Pot Trail. When the ground
is dry Red Spouter is a steam vent. When it is very wet, as in this
picture, it is a reddish, runny mud pot. Sometimes when the water
level is in between Red Spouter throws reddish water into the air.
Trees
along the Mt. Washburn Trail. Trees near the timberline can get sculpted
into unusual shapes by the harsh conditions. When all the living
branches grow on one side like this they are called banner trees.
The Mt. Washburn trail is a good day hike. It is a bit of a climb,
but the trail is fairly easy and wide (it used to be a road). There
is, at least when I was there there there was, a pay telephone at the weather
station, fire lookout, whatever it is, at the top. You can call your
relatives back home and make them guess where you are. I think they
may have a web cam up there now too. Check out the Yellowstone's
Webcams for that.
A
view along the Mt. Washburn trail. You can see the Grand Canyon of
the Yellowstone and some steam columns rising from a few thermal areas.
The flat grassy area in the distance is Hayden Valley.