WY Day 2 - Springs, Spouts, and Spectacular Views
Today was my big Yellowstone day, which I’ve been really looking forward to. I could absolutely have spent the whole week just exploring this tremendous park, but to give the slightly less famous parts of the state their fair share I just set aside today.
Because cheap Air BnBs are tough to find in Wyoming (again very few people), I actually started the day just next door in Rexburg, ID. I had a lovely home cooked breakfast from the nice Mormon family that put me up for the night. We talked about all the different National Parks they’d been to, and the youngest son told me about all his different horse figurines which was very cute. Not a bad way to start the day.
I got some coffee to fuel my wandering from a cute shop called June’s Place. It was recently opened and fairly unassuming but they had a warm friendly atmosphere and a mean cup of Joe.
From the moment I entered the West Entrance of Yellowstone, my jaw was firmly on the ground and it never came back up. It was like traveling through a portal of another time, everything looked so pristine and, barring the road in the distance, untouched by human hands.
Not even five minutes in, and I came across dozens of grazing buffalo. It was amazing seeing so man of the furry giants in one place. They’re such a fixture in American mythology, and at another point in time I don’t think people ever thought they’d see this many in one place before. It’s amazing for how large and intimidating they are, a big reason they were one the verge of extinction in the first place is that for the most part they are totally gentle dopes, all fuzz and naivete. Just look at how they plop down on their sides to soak up the sun.
As beautiful as all the lush greenery and clear blue waterways were, they are common features of many national parks. Yellowstone is unique though because for how serene it can look on the surface, it’s actually the largest center for volcanic and geothermal activity in the United States so underneath it all is a real constant turbulence of heat and gas. That volcanism when it does manifest on the surface, creates some of the most other-worldly vistas I’ve ever seen. Going from such a green field, to endless acres of ashy sand and soil it’s hard to believe you’re on the same planet let alone only a half mile down the road. My first exposure to this beautiful desolation was a short boardwalk trail (even when it looks peaceful the surface can be extremely hot) called the Fountain Paint Pot trail. Besides the volcanic soil, other features of the terrain are charred former trees and large amorphous spots of color called Bacteria mats because they’re actually made of a build up of millions of bacteria that have evolved to be resistant to the high temperatures.
And of course there’s geysers galore! Pockets of boiling water litter the landscape forming hot springs, and if there’s enough pressure available erupting into geysers (god, I hope no geologists are reading this, because that’s roughly right but very incomplete). It’s simply amazing to behold and it’s so rare to have a sense of drama while watching over park lands because you never know when they might explode.
Another highlight of the trail was the gorgeous Silex Spring, a deep blue pool scalding hot water. I don’t think I’d ever seen such a piercing baby blue occur in nature before, and the combinations of the fluorescent hues and mysterious depths made it hard to look away.
The namesake of the trail were some really weird formations called the Fountain Paint Pots. These are essentially hot springs that have over the years become filled with mud instead of pure water. There’s still a lot of thermal activity though and the mud is in a constant state of convections constantly bubbling and popping. They got the name paint pots, as opposed to the more general mud pots, because the varying states of iron in this particularly mud will produce rich red, yellow, and brown colors, which can blend with the blue waters underneath in swirls of natural impressionism.
All the Paint Pots were fascinating, but I liked these ones with a rich rust red color most because they really reminded me of artist’s clay and it was insane to see it just occurring naturally. I never understood how early peoples figured out that they could make pottery out of heat, water, and mud, but if they ever stumbled across something like this I can maybe see how the idea was born.
Back at the end of the trail was a sort of anti-Silex Spring, a stagnant pond with no real vents of thermal activity to circulate the bacteria filled waters. It wasn’t as a pretty but it does help capture just how wild and varied the views are all over the park.
The next big Yellowstone feature I stopped to see was the Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest hot spring in the park and the third largest in the world clocking in at 370 ft. wide and 160 ft. deep. It gets it’s name because the outer rim forms an astonishing rainbow (minus the indigo and violet) with the outer microbial mats ranging from red to green leading to that bright blue center. It must have absolutely blown the minds of the first explorers to stumble upon, and it still did a pretty good job blowing mine even though I knew it was going to be there. My photos don’t really it justice on account of my short stature and the thick veil of steam rolling off the 160 degree Fahrenheit water.
Luckily better photographers than I were nice enough to provide a much better view of this insane geologic feature:
Away from the center of the heat I loved the way the small layer of ground water would reflect the clouds above. It was deeply surreal.
The runoff from the spring also created really neat swaths of bacterial mats that look like the surface of Mars.
Along the same trail to the big Spring were some smaller water features, the Opal Pool and the Turquoise Pool which didn’t quite have full rainbows along the edges but still looked super neat.
The last and most dramatic feature along the trail was the Excelsior Geyser, which didn’t have the massive spouts of Old Faithful but had a constant low level boil and the occasional larger eruption. It was so cool seeing the steam break long enough to see the seething center of the pool in all its glory.
Walking back from the Excelsior Geyser, it was incredibly getting to follow the overflow directly into the Firehole River, tracing it’s journey from piping hot liquid through colorful bacteria mats, and down into a totally lovely and unassuming river surging by grass and wildflowers. The world is so weird and wonderful.
The last trail I walked before heading to see Old Faithful was the delightfully named Biscuit Basin loop which besides just being in a pretty area contained a number of unique features. The first one I encountered was the Black Opal Pool which was a lot like the Opal pool but with darker and spookier colors and textures.
Next up came the Sapphire Pool name for it’s piercing blue sheen and the crystalline shape of its mysterious caverns. It’s remarkable how clear it is, and it really feels like you’re getting to peek into an entirely new and different side of the world.
A small ways away came the Shell Pool named because it looks an uncanny amount like some kind of giant alien clam. Being a big ol’ nerd, my first thought was that it looks like the Sarlacc Pit Jabba the Hutt tries to throw Han Solo in but I’m guessing the name slightly predates that movie.
Next we had the Silver Globe Geyser System, small active pools that are actually connected by a series of underground vents that really illustrate just how little you can tell about things from simply looking at them.
Mustard Spring was next, and I think you can pretty much guess why that’s a perfect name for these impressive (if slightly gross) yellow-y brown waters.
Next we had West Geyser which very rarely erupts but does seem to have some cool looking rock and/or fallen tree formations happening at it’s opening which I’d like to know more about.
And last but not least in terms of geothermal features, we had the Black Pearl Geyser, which I’m pretty sure scientists have determined to be the source of all evil as we know it:
While the volcanic structures are certainly the most unique elements of the loop, I don’t want to sell you short on the more classic nature features. Looking out in the horizon is incredible views of forests in every direction and every so often you get some brave trees that tried to make their home in the volcano to decidedly mixed results:
Looking down along the boardwalk the mix of occasional vegetation and heat resistant bacteria really kept you guessing as to what color the surface would be at any moment which I can’t say about most hiking trails I’ve been on.
At last I made my way to see the star of the show, Old Faithful and I was pleasantly surprised by how sleek and modern the Visitor Center looks. It’s almost as if they’re expecting lots of tourists or something.
Inside they’ve got all sorts of boring stuff like educational materials about the Geysers, the park, and the wildlife, but clearly the only thing I cared about was that they had shockingly good ice cream. I got the Bear Tracks because it seemed fitting and it had a rich fudge swirl and sizable peanut cups mixed in to the creamy vanilla base. Oh my god did it make me happy (and also completely undo any health benefits I got from the previous hiking).
Because Old Faithful is so reliable, going off roughly every 45 minutes since 2000, I knew that I had about 40 minutes to kill until the next eruption so I decided to do walk along the trail nearby. The Upper Geyser Basin trail had a lot more vegetation than the previous trails with a couple of trees even managing to stick it out in the volcanic soil. The most striking feature of the trail though was that even when the geysers weren’t all out erupting there were was a pretty constant plumage of steam ominously wafting up into the heavens.
While Old Faithful gets all the glory, the trail also contains four other pretty reliable large geysers: Castle Geyser, Grand Geyser, Riverside Geyser, and Daisy Geyser. This means that the trail is speckled with evidence of all that volcanic activity including clear blue water, multi-colored bacteria mats, and lots of silica mineralization making the dirt extra shiny.
While I was walking, I started to panic because I heard the low rumbling of massive eruption, and I thought I’d somehow already taken 40 minutes and missed Old Faithful. Luckily it was one of the other four gassy boys and even at a distance it was an incredible thing to witness.
Having never seen any geyser eruptions I was already riding pretty high after that one, and I’ll be honest I was a little skeptical about Old Faithful being able to top it. I sat down in front of the hefty crater with a large group of eager tourists. One guy was a particular obnoxious caricature of American tourism talking loudly and belligerently for all to hear and unironically saying “Shut up, Grandma” to his actual 80 year old grandma when she tried to tell him he was being annoying. It was a lot, but once the rumbling started happening a hush came over everyone and we gazed as one with anticipation. At first there was just a lot of steam and some little dribs and drabs of water, but then even that ceased. Just as everyone was collectively thinking “Is that it?” a 30 foot jet of water rocketed out of the earth leaving everyone awestruck. The height, intensity, and length of the eruption (it sustained that forceful fountain jet for several minutes) were pure natural magic and I couldn’t have been more thrilled by how much this landmark completely lived up to the hype.
Before hitting the road, I got some coffee and a potty break at the Old Faithful Inn, an older, more rustic counterpoint to the modern visitor center. The whole building was a gorgeous but the soft glow and tranquility of the nature scenes silhouetted by the metal frames of the overhead lamps really wowed me.
I made my way south out of the Park, but just because I’d seen all the literal hot spots didn’t mean there weren’t still some sweeping vistas. I had to stop in the hilariously named area of West Thumb to get a beautiful view out over Lake Yellowstone, which was impressively still frozen just a few miles south east of waters that are over 200 degrees Fahrenheit. The diversity of ecosystems within Yellowstone is just unreal.
Just outside of the Yellowstone is actually another incredible National Park: Grand Teton. Fun fact, if you ever thought you were being immature by giggling at the name of the Teton Mountain range, the actual origin does come from French fur trappers looking at the mountains and calling them the “The Three Teats” so thinking teton is a funny word is just good etymology. Silly names aside looking out at the mountains over Lake Jackson, they do cut a pretty damn majestic figure that really makes you feel small being a human (especially a 5’5” human).
I drove past the Tetons, though this chunk of Wyoming is still pretty mountainous all the way through and eventually I did just have to pull over to document how crazy the scenery was even outside the national parks:
After all that hiking, I had worked up a mighty appetite so I stopped at the Cowboy Cafe in Dubois where they took good care of me. I went full southern comfort food, and got the chicken fried steak smothered in white gravy with a side of mash, veggies, and a dinner roll. It was hearty, fried, and the perfect way to end my day.
Favorite Random Sightings: Book Viking (not a group known for their love of reading); Spay And Neuter 40% off (you’d hope it was 100% off); Student Storage (i think storage for students not of); a woman wearing High heeled converse!
Regional Observation: Wyoming might have some of the most spectacular views in the country, but it probably has the worst cellphone reception so I actually really recommend good old fashion paper maps if you’ve got ‘em
Albums Listened To: Transcendental Youth by the Mountain Goats (probably my favorite of their recent output); Transformer by Lou Reed (just Walk on the Wild Side; Transitions by Westbound Train (probably the most soulful ska album to come out of Boston); Traveling Through, Will Sleep on Your Couch by Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains (very relatable title, solid folk punk album); Trick Bag by the Meters (a little too disco-y for me); The Triplets of Belleville Soundtrack by Ben Charest (beautifully weird French jazz from my favorite beautifully weird French Cartoon); Tropical Depression by the Mountain Goats (just Anti-Music Song); Trouble in the Land by Black 47 ( just the insane story song I got Laid on James Joyce’s Grave)
People’s Favorite Jokes: One from the web:
Two windmills are in a field. One asks, "What kind of music do you like?"
The other one says, "Well, I’m a big metal fan."
Songs of the Day:
I really love this song
I’d never seen this clip before but I’m into it
That’s some dancin’ music right there
One of my all time favorite movies