Living Our Dream

Fort Laramie, WY

As we mentioned in our last post, several of the pioneer trails followed the wide North Platte River Valley because the valley is relatively level and the river provided a good source for the pioneers and their animals. Therefore, there are numerous historic sites relating to the pioneer trails in this area of western Nebraska and eastern Wyoming. One of the most important locations was Fort Laramie in western Wyoming.

Gering, NE is located near the Wyoming-Nebraska Border, so it was a drive of about an hour to the northwest back into Wyoming to Fort Laramie. Fort Laramie was named for the Laramie River, which flows into the North Platte River adjacent to the fort. The Laramie River in turn was named for Jacques La Ramee who was a French-Canadian fur trapper who lived in the area in the 1820s. Jaques La Ramee was killed by Indians. The town of Laramie, WY, which is located 80 miles to the southwest of Fort Laramie, also gets its name from the same river.

We started our tour of Fort Laramie NHS with a stop in the visitor center, which was built in 1884 as the storehouse for the post commissary. We viewed a 15 or 20-minute movie about the history of the fort, and we checked out the displays like the one of cavalry uniforms in the photo below.

Paul then got into the act by trying on a cap typically used by the military in the late 1800s called a kepi.

Friction between early mountain men and the Indians was rare. The mountain men traded with the Indians and frequently took Indian wives which helped establish themselves in the Indian communities. When the big fur trading corporations arrived, there was more competition for trading and for furs. Fort William, which was a wooden stockade fort, was established at the confluence of the Laramie and North Platte Rivers by a trading company in 1834 in that spirit of competition.

By the late 1830s, the mountain men had opened numerous trails through the area, and emigrants began following those trails to seek their fortunes in the west. Fort John was an adobe fort that replaced Fort William in 1841. Fort John was built as a trading post to supply the pioneers because, as we learned a short while ago at Fort Bridger, the fur trade was declining by the 1840s.

By the late 1840s, the trickle of emigrants had become a flood, especially after the discovery of gold in California 1848. In 1849, the U. S. Government bought Fort John and established a military post there as a place for them to restock supplies. Most wagon trains departed from Independence, MO, or Council Bluffs, IA. Fort Laramie was about 1/3 of the way to Oregon, so the pioneers would have needed supplies by the time they got that far.

In 1869, the transcontinental railroad was completed making it possible to cross the plains in a week or two instead of 5 or 6 months. As use of the pioneer trails decreased, the pioneers passing through were replaced by homesteaders who were looking to stay. The settlers raised the ire of the Indians much more than the pioneers, and the military was called on to protect the settlers. Expansion of the western forts took place in the 1870s and 1880s. Eventually, Fort Laramie became the center of operations of all the military forts in the Northern Plains.

Although the two previous forts at the confluence of the Laramie and North Platte Rivers were officially called Fort William and Fort John, they were both commonly called fort Laramie. The new military post was officially named Fort Laramie. Most of what remains at Fort Laramie National Historic Site today is from the military post.

From the visitor center we began our tour of the fort at the restored cavalry barracks built in 1874.

Downstairs there were supply rooms, a tack room, a kitchen and a mess hall. Sleeping quarters were upstairs.

We were impressed by the attention to detail in the displays in the barracks. The sleeping quarters are complete with rifles stacked near the door, beds that are made, uniforms and clothing hanging on the hooks and names above the beds. There was even a game of checkers in progress on one of the tables.

On the grounds of the fort are numerous restored buildings. There are also standing ruins of other buildings that have been stabilized to help preserve them, and there are remnants of foundations of buildings. On the opposite side of the visitor center from the cavalry barracks were two bakeries. The one on the left in the photo below is the restored 1876 bakery, and on the right are the standing ruins of the newer, 1883 bakery.

In addition to the attention to detail in the displays throughout the fort, we were equally impressed by the knowledge of the interpreters at various locations. The young man in the bakery explained how much work it was to keep the soldiers supplied with bread. The baker and his assistant started early in the morning by building fires in the two ovens. After measuring out and mixing the ingredients in a large trough, the dough was kneaded by hand. By the time the dough had risen, the fires had usually burned down to hot coals to provide even heat for the baking.

Unfortunately, after all that work the soldiers didn't get to enjoy the freshly-baked bread. The post surgeon was convinced the yeast in the bread was still alive. In order to avoid intestinal problems for the troops, the bakers were under orders to store the bread for 24 hours before serving it, so all the soldiers got was day-old bread. The next photo shows how bread would have been stacked on cooling shelves.

They still make small batches of bread to the original recipe today in the wood-fired oven to give out as samples. The bread is very dense and pretty dry. It needed butter.

Next to the bakery was a garden plot. Two ladies in 19th century costumes were tending the garden.

We probably spent at least 20 or 30 minutes chatting with the lady in the photo above. She was playing the role of a laundress. The Army recruited single women and widows to do laundry for the soldiers. The women received $20 a month, which was more pay than a sargent would have gotten, plus she would have received food, housing and medical care. The women were often given garden plots for their personal use.

Although the women weren't in the Army, they were subject to many of the same rules as the soldiers such as having to have permission to date and to marry. The period of commitment was for 5 years after which they could go their own way or sign up again with a recommendation from the commanding officer.

Most of the buildings at the fort were laid out around the parade grounds which were used for drills and ceremonies. On the eastern side of the parade grounds there were foundations of infantry barracks where there was an archeological dig going on.

At the southern end of the parade grounds was a house built in 1870 originally as the commanding officer's quarters. The house ended up being divided into a duplex for higher-ranking officers who were married.

As we rounded the corner to head up the western side of the parade grounds, we passed the ruins of housing for additional quarters for married officers. There was also a drinking fountain that we thought was cute. It had steps for the kids and a lower faucet and bowl for puppies.

On the western side of the parade grounds are the quarters built in 1849 for unmarried officers. This building is the oldest surviving military building in Wyoming. The building got the nickname "Old Bedlam" from the hospital in London that was the first institution to specialize in mental illness. The nickname apparently came from the noises emitted from the quarters, especially during parties.

The next photo shows one of the rooms in "Old Bedlam." The attention to detail with half-empty bottles and cards on the table and a towel draped over the back of a chair makes the room look lived in. You feel like one of the officers could walk through the door at any minute.

By 1890, most of the Indians were on reservations. Fort Laramie, like Fort Bridger that we saw a while back, was decommissioned and abandoned.

We were really impressed with Fort Laramie. It was well worth the drive to see it. There is another pioneer landmark closer to the campground we wanted to see. We'll tell you about it in our next post.

Grand Teton National Park lies just to the south of Yellowstone. In fact, the entry fee for one will get you into the other. Because of the close proximity, we certainly couldn't pass up a day trip down to see the beauty of the Tetons while we were staying in West Yellowstone.

The Grand Teton Range is part of the Rocky Mountains. The unique feature of the Tetons is they rise abruptly out of the surrounding terrain without any foot hills. The vertical rise of the jagged peaks contrasts with the flat, sage-covered valley.

The reason the Tetons rise so abruptly is there is a 40-mile long fault line that runs along the base of the range. The land to the west lifted skyward to form the mountains while the block of land to the east tilted downward and continues to dive below the western block lifting the western block even higher.

Approaching from the north, we first came to Jackson Lake. Jackson Lake was originally a natural, glacially-created lake. In 1906, Idaho farmers paid to have a dam built to turn the lake into a reservoir so the water could be used for irrigation. The lake is fed by the Snake River, which flows into Idaho after it leaves Jackson Lake. The original dam, which raised the level of the lake by 20 feet, was replaced so the level of the lake is now 30 to 39 feet above its natural level. Idaho farmers still have the rights to the water in Jackson Lake.

The photo below is a view of the Tetons from the marina behind Jackson Lake Lodge.

A little farther along Teton Park Road, we came to Mount Moran. Mount Moran is not only picturesque, but it is interesting because of a vertical black streak near the summit. This streak, or black dike as it is called, is a 150-foot thick layer of magma that was forced upward through a large, vertical crack before the mountain was uplifted. Erosion of the surrounding rock has left the black dike clearly visible.

The next stop along Teton Park Road is Jenny Lake, possibly the most picturesque area in the park. From the eastern shore, you can see several peaks of the Teton Range reflected in the lake. The photo below is the view across Jenny Lake looking a little to the south...

...and this shot is looking across the lake to the west.

Like most of the other lakes in the park, Jenny Lake was formed by a glacier. The glacier scooped out an indentation in the ground that filled with water when the glacier melted. Jenny Lake is about 200 feet deep.

Twelve named glaciers remain in Grand Teton National Park, the largest of which is Teton Glacier. Although the size varies, it is about 3,500 feet long and about 1,100 feet wide and moves about 30 feet a year. Teton Glacier is the white patch in the upper center part of the photo below.

As we approached the south end of the park, we took a short trip up a side road and down a dirt road to Mormon Row, which is an area that was homesteaded by predominantly Mormon settlers in the late 1800s. Some of the farm buildings remain, including several much-photographed barns like the one below.

The settlers had quite a view.

We saw several bison in the fields near Mormon Row, and a few of them decided to cross the road near where we were photographing the barn.

At the southern end of the national park is the Chapel of the Transfiguration. The chapel was built in 1925. The doors are unlocked 24/7 during the summer. The chapel can also be reserved for weddings.

There is a picture window behind the altar that frames the majestic Tetons. We couldn't help but be in awe of God as Creator.

Here we are standing in front of the chapel, which is built of Lodgepole pine cut in the valley.

A few miles beyond the south boundary of Teton National Park is the town of Jackson. Jackson Hole is the name of the area where the town of Jackson is located. It is called Jackson Hole because it is a valley surrounded by mountains. Jackson is a resort town that draws hoards of visitors each year, especially during ski season. Numerous celebrities visit Jackson and several of them, including Harrison Ford, Vice President Dick Cheney, Tiger Woods, and Sandra Bullock, maintain part-time residences in or near the town.

The main downtown area has a western look and feel about it, which you can see in the photo below. You can also see some of the ski slopes on the mountains in the background.

The carved door of this bar continues the western theme. The sidewalks are wood.

A stage coach passed by adding to the western feel of Jackson.

Right in the center of town is a park. All four corners of the park have arches made from shed elk antlers.

After we walked around the town and looked in a few shops, we stopped for a Dairy Queen then headed north back through Grand Teton National Park to our rig. We enjoyed changing views of the mountains as we drove along.

Back at the motor home, we took it easy after our all-day excursion. We would soon be heading off to our next destination in Idaho.

While the thermal features are certainly striking, they aren't the only thing in Yellowstone to get excited about. Yellowstone is also known for its abundant wildlife and beautiful scenery.

The national park is located on the Yellowstone Plateau, which is part of the Rocky Mountains. With an area of over 3,000 square miles, there is a great deal of diversity in the topography and scenery in this national park. Yellowstone has mountains, forests, meadows, canyons, rivers, waterfalls, and lakes.

Most of the park is at an elevation of approximately 7,000 feet, but the mountains to the east can go to about 10,000 feet. The climate throughout the park is cool because of the elevation. Temperatures were in the high 60s and low 70s during the day and in the 40s at night when we were there. One morning when we woke up, our outside thermometer read 30 degrees. We were glad we took our plants in!

Yellowstone Lake has an area of over 130 square miles and is almost 400 feet deep. It is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet in altitude in North America. The Yellowstone River flows northward out of Yellowstone Lake. Along the river is Hayden Valley, which is a good place to spot wildlife, especially in the morning and evening.

A little farther downstream (north) on the Yellowstone River are the Upper and Lower Falls. The most beautiful scenery in Yellowstone in our opinion is in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone right below the Lower Falls. Here the 300+ foot high Lower Falls sits at the head of the canyon whose walls of yellow gave Yellowstone its name.

 

The walls of the canyon are dotted with hot springs, which stain the rock with minerals and provide a kaleidoscope of color.

You can sometimes see puffs of steam from some of the springs. The steam is a little hard to see in the photo below. It is flowing the same direction as the river, but the steam is a little darker gray.

The Upper Falls, surrounded by pine trees, are only 109' high and have a much different appearance than the Lower Falls. The Upper Falls are often overlooked because of its close proximity to Lower Falls, but Upper Falls are beautiful in their own right. There is an overlook right at the brink of the falls where you can stand and hear the water roar and feel the mist on your face.

There is an exposed lava flow farther down the canyon. This lava flow formed cracks as it cooled, which formed columns; and although it is a lot shorter and wider, it is reminiscent of Devils Tower.

Yellowstone National Park has five major rivers. The presence of all the rivers also means Yellowstone is a fly fisherman's paradise. No matter where we went, we always passed people with waders fishing in the cold waters.

The changes in elevation in the park also mean there are many waterfalls. Yellowstone has over 275 waterfalls and cascades with a height of greater than 15 feet. One that is easily accessible is Gibbon Falls on the Gibbon River, which flows south between Norris and Madison on the western side of the park. The falls tumble about 80' where the Gibbon River flows over the escarpment into the Yellowstone Caldera.

 

Traveling up the Gibbon River from Gibbon Falls, we passed Norris and began following the Gardiner River, which flows north. On our way to the North Entrance, we passed a marker for the 45th Parallel, which is the latitude that is half way between the Equator and the North Pole. It was a good reminder that since we have passed the summer solstice, the sun was heading south; and it was time to start thinking about planning our path to follow the sun for winter. :)

The climate in the area around the North Entrance is actually a little warmer than the rest of the park, because it is at a somewhat lower elevation. The North Entrance is the only one of the five entrances that is open in winter.

Roosevelt Arch is located at the North Entrance. This 50' high stone arch was built in 1903. At that time, most visitors arrived by train and the arch faced the train station. Although we couldn't get a good picture because the other side of the arch was in shadow, a stone plaque at the top is engraved "For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People."

The landscape around the North Entrance has a different appearance than most of the rest of the park. Gone are the pine forests, replaced instead by sparse trees, grass, and sagebrush.

Paul took the photo below because of the elk (more about wildlife later), but the picture does a good job of showing the grass and sagebrush landscape.

Along the northern edge of the park near Tower, there is evidence from the past of a warmer Yellowstone. The petrified redwood in the photo below is genetically the same as present-day redwoods in California. The tree was buried by volcanic ash and landslides. Then silica in the volcanic ash filled the cells of the tree creating a trunk of stone. There were originally three petrified trunks standing in this area before souvenir hunters many years ago chipped away the other two. The remaining tree is now protected by a fence.

On the way back from the North Entrance, along the eastern side of the park, we stopped for lunch and enjoyed the view toward the Absakora Mountains to the east.

In addition to thermal features and beautiful scenery, Yellowstone has abundant wildlife. One needs to be a little careful driving in Yellowstone because wildlife is just that - wild. The animals don't look both ways when crossing, and they think nothing of taking a walk right down the road. When someone in a car spots wildlife, they slow down to look, sometimes stopping on the road. These slow-downs are referred to as bear jams (or bison jams, or whatever).

When we think of wildlife at Yellowstone, we think first of Bison. Bison are in the same family as cattle; and although they are sometimes also called buffalo, this is a misnomer. They are not related to Asian and African buffalo.

Bison are unpredictable. They may appear docile and slow, but they can turn and charge without warning. Bison can outrun and out maneuver all but the fastest horse and an adult bison can weigh up to a ton. Therefore, all our bison photos were taken either from a distance or from inside the car. We were surprised to learn that they lose their fur every year. Does that mean your buffalo blanket is only good for one year before it sheds all its fur? :)

Elk are even more plentiful than bison in Yellowstone. There are 15,000 to 22,000 elk that live in the park in summer. Adult bulls weigh around 700 pounds while females weigh around 500 pounds. A herd of elk apparently lives by the Madison River which flows along the road by which we entered and exited the park every day. We saw females and calves almost every time we passed, but we were thrilled one morning to see several bulls with their new, velvet-covered antlers.

Also along the same road was a bald eagle nest. Cars were prohibited from stopping and walking along this stretch of road was banned, so it was hard to get a clear shot of the eagles in the treetops from a moving car. We did see the parents most days and even saw one of the eaglets standing on a branch near the end of our stay. It's a little difficult to see, but the photo below is one of the bald eagle parents standing on the branch of a tree adjacent to their nest.

We also saw numerous smaller birds, but didn't get a good enough look at most of them to be able to identify them. However, this raven did come right up and sit on the wall alongside the pullout where we had stopped to photograph Gibbon Falls.

While we're on the subject of birds, there is a creek in Yellowstone named Pelican Creek and for good reason. There were numerous white pelicans there both times we passed by. We were used to seeing brown pelicans in Myrtle Beach and Florida, but had never seen white pelicans. White pelicans are larger (9' wingspan vs. 6 1/2' for brown) and white pelicans do not dive below the surface from the air to feed like brown pelicans. White pelicans feed while swimming. The photo below shows a group of white pelicans resting on a log in Pelican Creek.

Yellowstone is also well known for its bears. All trash receptacles in Yellowstone as well as the dumpsters in the campground had bear-proof latches on the lids. Despite all the precautions and warnings about bears, we didn't see any. Wolves are also an elusive resident we didn't see. They probably stay deeper in the woods or in the more remote parts of northeastern Yellowstone. Wolves were reintroduced to the park in 1995, and they are thriving. At last count, there were 170 individuals in the park living in 11 packs.

Coyotes are also somewhat elusive, but fairly plentiful. We did see one trotting down the road. By the time we did get close enough for a photo, he had jumped up on the bank and was making his way off through the wildflowers. You can just see his ears and backside toward the right of the picture.

Speaking of wildflowers, there was a patch at least a quarter of a mile long along the road from the East Entrance near Yellowstone Lake. We didn't see it in time to get the camera ready and get a photo on our way in with the motor home; and, of course, there's no easy way to turn around with the motor home. Therefore, we went back to get a better look and to photograph the flowers one day we were near that area.

The majority of the trees in Yellowstone are Lodgepole pines, which grow straight and tall to 75'. Native Americans used them for poles and frames for tepees and lodges, hence the name. There are also Engleman spruce, subalpine fir, and whitebark pine.

Aspen trees are making a comeback because of the wolves. The elk, which had no real enemies in the park, had been overgrazing young Aspen shoots for many years. Now that wolves have been reintroduced to the park, the elk are moving about more; and the Aspens are again beginning to thrive.

Back in 1988, the U. S. experienced one of the driest years on record. Barge traffic on the Mississippi was restricted by low water. These drought conditions greatly contributed to numerous fires in Yellowstone and throughout the west that year. In 1988, wildfires touched almost half the area of the park. Even Old Faithful Lodge which is shown in the photo below, was threatened.

Throughout many areas of Yellowstone evidence of fire can be seen. There are tall, bare trunks standing and many fallen trunks strewn about on the ground. Many of the trunks have charred areas. Smaller pines about 12 to 15' tall are growing among the fallen and standing dead trees.

Fires have always been part of the history of Yellowstone and of forests everywhere. Many plant species can survive fires and some, like the Lodgepole pines so plentiful in Yellowstone, actually depend on fire to reproduce. The seeds of the Lodgepole pines are only released from the pine cones by intense heat.

Signs of recovery from the 1988 Yellowstone fires were almost immediate with new growth beginning in some areas within a matter of days. The most noticeable and longest lasting effect of the fire has been the loss of large trees. The policy of the National Park Service is to not intervene in the natural order of things so no attempt was made to reseed or replant. As you can see in the photo below, the growth of new trees is abundant. These trees represent 20 years growth so it will be some time before tall trees once again fill the park, but they have a good start.

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Yellowstone. It is such a large and diverse park that changes constantly so there will always be more to see. We look forward to returning someday soon.

Several months ago when we decided to go to Yellowstone this year, we tried to get reservations in Fishing Village RV Campground which is the only campground right in Yellowstone that has electrical hookups. Unfortunately, we couldn't get in for as many days as we wanted to stay at the time we wanted to be there. Even though we could have dry camped at one of the several other campgrounds in the park, those sites are limited as to the size RV they can accommodate. Therefore, we made reservations at Yellowstone Grizzly RV Park in West Yellowstone, MT.

Staying in West Yellowstone would require us to drive all the way through the park to reach our destination on the west side. In the photo below, we are in the motor home waiting our turn to enter the park, which coincidentally was the two-year anniversary of our full-timing.

The drive through Yellowstone in the motor home was a little slow since there are a few steep climbs on the eastern side, but we took our time and pulled off on some of the numerous pullouts to let other traffic pass. Eventually we made it to the campground by early afternoon. We chose Grizzly because it is only about a half mile outside the west entrance to the park and because of the good reviews it received on rvparkreviews.com, which is a resource we use quite often.

Grizzly RV Park is a very well-maintained RV park with wide, paved roads, gravel pads with concrete edging, and paved patios. There is nice landscaping in the campground and good space between the sites. Grass is watered every night, so don't leave anything out that you don't want to get wet. The photo below shows our site at Grizzly.

West Yellowstone is a nice resort town with a steady stream of RVs coming and going as it is the major route to Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. There are a couple of grocery stores, quite a number of restaurants, many stores specializing in fishing gear, souvenir shops full of all things Yellowstone, gas stations with gas a little cheaper than in the park, and motels. We were surprised to find that West Yellowstone had a better selection of T-shirts than the in-park gift shops. In every shop that had felt cowboy hats, Paul tried them on, but alas, he's more enamored with the IDEA of wearing a hat than actually doing it. It's a shame since he looks soooo good in a hat. :) West Yellowstone also has a museum which we, unfortunately, did not have time to visit AND they had a Dairy Queen.

Yellowstone National Park is the oldest of our national parks having been established in 1872. It covers 3,468 square miles, mostly in Wyoming, but a little of it also extends into Montana and Idaho. The southern part of Yellowstone sits in the caldera, or crater, of a supervolcano. Although the volcano has not erupted for thousands of years, it is considered to be still active. The magma chamber is relatively close to the surface, and this is part of the reason for all the geothermal activity.

The most spectacular way the geothermal activity can manifest itself is through geysers, but conditions must be just right for geysers to occur. There are only about 1000 known, active geysers in the world and over half of them are located in Yellowstone National Park. Three things are necessary to make a geyser: water, heat, and the proper "plumbing" within the rock, and they must be present in the proper proportions. Water and heat are easy to find, but it's the rock that is the key factor. The explanation of the rock "plumbing" is somewhat complicated; but it basically has to do with just the right kind and amount of porosity. Geysers also need somewhat of a restriction near the surface so the steam pressure below can build up and expand to expel water above. For more information on geysers and how they work, check out the link to About Geysers by Alan Glennon.

Undoubtedly, the most famous geyser is Old Faithful. The reason it is so famous is that it is fairly predictable, it erupts relatively frequently at approximate 90 minute intervals, and it is relatively tall at an average height of 130 feet or so.

There are geysers in Yellowstone that are taller than Old Faithful, but they are not as frequent or as predictable. Although it can have minor eruptions of only 15 or 20 feet, Steamboat Geyser, which is the tallest active geyser in the world, has major eruptions of over 300 feet. However, Steamboat Geyser's last eruption was in 2005; and no one can predict when the next one will be.

Beehive Geyser is one of the tallest, regularly active geysers erupting once or twice a day to a height of up to 200 feet. Just as we arrived at the visitor center to check out expected eruption times for Old Faithful, they were announcing that a ranger had seen signs Beehive was going to erupt in the next 15 minutes. Since Beehive is very close to Old Faithful, we were able to hustle over just in time to see it.

Some geysers erupt much more often than Old Faithful. Rusty Geyser, named for the color of the small basin surrounding the geyser, erupts every few minutes; but it is only 1 to 6 feet tall.

Clepsydra Geyser erupts almost continuously to heights of up to 45 feet high. The photo below is a view of the boardwalk approaching Clepsydra Geyser.

This is a closer view of Clepsydra with little Spasm Geyser in the foreground.

Another type of geothermal activity are steam vents or fumeroles. Steam vents occur in conditions similar to those required for geysers, but there isn't quite enough water present to create the periodic eruptions of a geyser. Steam vents don't have the restrictions in the plumbing that geysers have, and they frequently occur on hillsides above the level of more abundant water. The photo below shows Black Growler Steam Vent in the Norris Geyser Basin at Yellowstone. The name is very appropriate.

Roaring Mountain is in the northern part of Yellowstone and is a hillside with numerous steam vents. The number of fumeroles has decreased since the beginning of the 20th century, and Hissing Mountain would probably be a more appropriate name today.

The most common geothermal feature found in Yellowstone is the hot spring. These can range from a small, steaming seep from the ground to pools of various sizes, or to large, steaming lakes. Hot springs occur when there is an abundance of water, but where there are no restrictions in the underground plumbing like there are for geysers. The lack of restriction allows the water to circulate freely and be heated rather than to be periodically forcefully expelled the way it is with a geyser.

One of the most famous and beautiful hot springs is Morning Glory Pool. The photo below shows Margery at the start of our 2-mile, round-trip hike to the pool. She decided to use the walking sticks since this was the longest walk since her knee surgery, and we were doing it after walking almost a mile round trip from the car to Beehive and Old Faithful Geysers.

On the way to Morning Glory Pool, we stopped for a photo of Paul in front of Gem Pool.

Morning Glory Pool got its name from the deep blue color at the center of the pool. The blue color is caused by sunlight being scattered by fine particles suspended in the water. Over the years, thoughtless visitors have tossed coins, rocks, trash, and sticks into the pool clogging the vent and causing the flow of water to decrease. This has caused the water to cool which has allowed some of the heat-loving microorganisms (called thermophiles) that cause the yellow and orange color around the edge of the pool to grow in the center turning the color to green. In the photo below, Margery is sitting on the boardwalk admiring Morning Glory Pool.

On the way to Morning Glory, we spotted the pool in the photo below.

On the walk back to the car, however, we discovered it wasn't just a pool, but it was Artemesia Geyser. Artemesia only erupts once or twice a day. On our way to Morning Glory there were three people reading or napping to bide their time waiting for an eruption.  We were blessed to catch the eruption it in progress.

Incidentally, Margery made the 2-mile, round-trip walk to Morning Glory Pool (on top of previously walking almost a mile to Old Faithful and Beehive Geysers) with no problem.

Paul's favorite hot spring was Great Prismatic Spring. The deep blue color of the center of the spring (again caused by sunlight being scattered by fine particles suspended in the water similar to Morning Glory) and the bright orange and red color in the perimeter caused by thermophiles are so intense they are reflected in the steam floating over the pool.

 Norris Basin is the hottest and most changeable thermal area in Yellowstone. It is the home of Steamboat Geyser, the world's tallest active geyser. Unfortunately, Steamboat's eruptions are very seldom and quite unpredictable, so it was quiet when we were there. Norris Basin also has numerous hot springs including this one with green and yellow thermophiles in the runoff.

 

 

In the photo below, we are standing in front of Porcelain Springs in Norris Basin.

At the northern edge of the park is Mammoth Hot Springs which has some of Yellowstone's most spectacular hot springs. Here, as ground water seeps down through thick layers of sedimentary limestone, it comes in contact with hot gasses containing carbon dioxide from the magma chamber below. The carbon dioxide readily dissolves in the hot water forming a weak acid. The hot, acidic water dissolves some of the limestone and carries it to the surface. When exposed to the air, the carbon dioxide escapes; and the water can no longer contain the dissolved limestone so the limestone forms a solid mineral deposit called travertine.

At Mammoth Hot Springs, some of the mineral deposits form terraces down the hillside such as these at Canary Spring.

Some of the hot springs form mounds such as Orange Spring Mound.

Liberty Cap (named for the peaked caps worn during the French Revolution - this area was originally explored by French trappers) is the mound of an extinct spring that must have had very high pressure and must have been active for quite a long time (several hundred years) to produce such a tall mound.

The photo below shows a closeup of Palette Spring which can be seen behind Liberty Cap in the photo above. Palette Spring has an orange, active section to the left; a white, inactive section to the right; and the cone of an extinct spring in the center.

A mud pot is a type of hot spring except with a little less water. Also, the water needs to be acidic so it can dissolve some of the surrounding volcanic rock into clay which mixes with the water to form the mud. The amount of water determines if the mud is thick or thin and watery. In summer, some mud pots dry up altogether. The photo below is the Fountain Paint Pot. You can see the gas bubbles coming to the surface of the mud, which is about the consistency of latex wall paint.

Near the Fountain Paint Pot is Red Spouter. You can see by the splashes on the left side, this mud is thinner. In late summer, the mud dries; and Red Spouter becomes a hissing fumerole.

The thermal features of Yellowstone aren't located very many other places on earth, and they are exciting. But stay tuned for some other features of Yellowstone that aren't as hot, but are equally thrilling.