08.17.11 we woke up in a hotel situated in Bozeman, a typical “wild-west” city not far from our destination. It took us twelve hours of driving through three states: Washington, Idaho and Montana, until we reached the park, which has 80 % of its territory located in Wyoming. The scenery that we were viewing along our way captivated us by the abundance and glory of mountains and valleys. The herds of cattle grazed on every other field; all farm areas were neat and facilitated, which crated a sense of idyll.

We left Bozeman for Gardiner – another western city with houses resembling those from adventure movies about the wild west- and there we were anticipating our meeting with the natural and scientific wonder – the Yellowstone National Park. After a short drive, we saw a massive archway known as the Roosevelt Arch, which was designed as a major entrance into the Park. The gigantic arch invited us to explore unaltered geological features and learn about the unique volcanic processes under the surface of this amazing piece of land.

Our first place to visit was the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Through the tour lead by the professional ranger we discovered that millions years ago, when the land in the Park was flat, the tectonic plates collided and produced what is now the Rocky Mountains. Overtime, the volcanic eruptions blasted that land and created a deep and wide crater, which spewed molten magma. After this a long period of Ice Ages lasted until warmer climate came and reshaped the land into its present and unique form.

At the Grand Canyon we took a short but strenuous hike along the road brims to the Artistic Point, where we enjoyed a picturesque view of the Lower and Upper Falls and saw the canyon’s cliffs, which had such yellow hue because of the iron contained in he rocks. Beneath the cliffs, the Yellowstone River was roaring, reminding us of the power of its waters which sculptured a long and deep chasm through the erosion. On our way back to the cabins we spotted deer grazing close to the roadway. It was not scared of curious tourists and posed lazily while we were taking pictures.

Even though we were overwhelmed by what we experienced during the day, we couldn’t resist taking a walk at night to see a wonderful starry sky, which was so dark and infinite that we felt the whole was universe staring at us in enigmatic silence.

The second day impressed me most as I learnt about obscure geological processes through the tours led by rangers. We woke up early in the morning feeling refreshed after a day we spent in the mountainous area. Our first destination was Mammoth Hot Springs area which luckily just 15 minutes walking from our cabins. We had a very vague understanding of what were the origins of the beautiful rocky terraces with occasional bubbling pools when we approached them. At the Liberty Cap dome-shaped formation, where we waited for our guides, we all were trying to guess if the “Cup” was a dormant little volcano or a fancy piece of rock. However, we were surprised to hear that it was an old hot spring which over years grew into the mass of travertine (type of limestone). The area was all covered by colorful cascades looking like caves turned inside out and dotted by sink holes with boiling water. The ranger explained to us that beautiful terraces were formed by the travertine deposits. They were all active or dormant hot springs, and the area was being continuously shaped and reformed through the volcanic processes underneath the surface. All formations had their bright coloring due to the heat loving bacteria. The explanation to all those wonders was a magma chamber that lied deep under ground.  Those landscape features were all results of a volcanic eruption that happened centuries ago and the magma still restlessly worked on sculpturing new forms.

Our brains had a lot to deal with! However we could not wait to move on to our next destination: Mud Pots area. On our way there we were hoping to see wild animals. Gene dreamt about a grizzly bear, while Nadia wanted to find mountainous goats. But how happy we were to see an elk grazing along the road! We hurried to approach it closer to take pictures, while it slowly went on chewing the grass and showing us his thick antlers. Just 10 minutes passed and we witnessed a bison family resting on the loan. We were very hungry and did not hesitate to get our quick lunch right away, while observing bisons sunbathing.

With new energy positive emotions we moved on to the mud pots area. Mud pots are different from hot spring because their pools contained molten rocks instead of water. And also they smelt like rotten eggs! Indeed it was sulfuric acid which caused the smell and created mud out of rocks. The smell made Sasha complain a lot, but still the landscape was very attractive.

For the next few hours we traveled in the car enjoying the spirit of freedom which hovered in the air as we drove, viewing gorgeous mountains and wide valleys beneath them. As we stopped by another view point, we saw the Yellowstone River rushing between the cliffs and Sasha practiced her photo skills on my camera. The pictures can deliver a part of those sensations that we experienced staying on the bridge high above the river.

As we drove through the Lamar Valley, we were lucky to witness a herd of bison walking at the sunset. I knew I had to be cautious when approaching them, and kept getting closer until Nadya and Sasha got scared by a couple of angry bisons, moving towards the car. We jumped in and drove away, ans took a deep breath only when we drove a couple miles away from that spot. It is better to be safe, better to avoid joking with wild animals…but we were definitely impressed by that scene! What we saw next was much more peaceful and pleasing. Three elks were hopping in the tall grass, and Sasha was most of all excited to view those timid creatures. We observed them quietly until it got dark, and left the valley overwhelmed by natural wonders of the Park. Although we felt tired, it took us a long time to fall asleep. We all were talking and laughing, joking with Sasha, and sharing emotions that we gathered during the day.

So, we already have learnt a lot about hot springs and mud pots, how they are formed, and how they serve for bacteria’s growth. Today our plan is explore another amazing feature – the Yellowstone Park’s geysers.

Early on the morning we set off to the Norris Area, located along the Firehole River. The Ranger met us in front of the Norris Geyser Museum and begun his tour by clarifying the structure of the natural fountains. He explained that what made the geysers so rare was that somewhere near the surface, in the plumbing system of a geyser, there were constrictions which made the superheated water burst high into the sky. As we walked along the narrow boardwalks through the Norris Basin, the Ranger introduced to us the oldest and the hottest geysers, some of them were as old as 100 000 years old. Among most amazing spots of the Norris we saw was the world’s tallest unpredictable geyser – Steamboat Geyser. However, the geyser was only slightly bubbling as we passed it. Most of all I liked a little yellow volcano-shaped geyser which was calmly fuming through the tiny hole. The only picture of Sasha that I took there was in front of the Mystery spring – a big pool with crystal blue water, surrounded by fir trees. Although we didn’t witness any wild eruptions that morning, the tour again made us feel like on another planet – so unusual was the landscape, and so powerful were underground forces that had been shaping the basin. It was a vast valley with geysers and hot springs here and there, no evidence of plant life except for bacteria and occasional footprints of bison.

Our next stop that day was at the Yellowstone Lake bank, which was a great contrast to what we had just seen because of the sense of joyous life and freedom coming from natural surroundings. Green grass and lofty furs, blue water, snowy mountains at the horizon, and couple of grazing buffalo – all gave us a lot of positive energy and we were jumping and laughing, enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. Freedom, happiness and peace were what I felt while being there and now I clearly view the picture of natural beauty of the Yellowstone Lake area.

On our way to the next spot we witnessed an unusual scene – a herd of buffalo was casually crossing the road in the rest area. It was so scary and unexpectedly for Sasha, that she ran away screaming, but then immediately grabbed a camera and made a short movie. Who knows where else you can see a wild bison in the Yellowstone Park!

For the second part of the day we planned to visit another famous hydrothermal basin –  the Old faithful Area. We were lucky to arrive half an hour before the predicted eruption time of Old Faithful geyser, which is the most popular Yellowstone’s predictable geyser. It was performing for us for 5 minutes, while we were gazing at it in amazement. A huge amphitheatre, which surrounded the geyser, was filled with tourists, and all of them, impressed by the gorgeous scene, applauded when the eruption ended. It was a good beginning of a tour with a ranger through the area which was abundant with other unique geysers and hot springs. First we saw Castle Geyser – the park’s oldest geyser with the large castle-shaped cone. It was letting off only fumes while we were watching it, but 15 minutes later, viewing from the further point, we saw the geyser blowing its top with a fury of stream in all its beauty. As we were listening to the stories about every other geyser, we felt that each of them had its own distinctive personality – like all humans do. Nadya laughed at one of the geysers comparing it to Sasha – it erupted non-stop, taking over the water from all close-located geysers. In a similar way, Sashenka’s endless energy usually attracts attention to her as it was happening all along the trip! Indeed her jokes made our traveling even funnier, and we were laughing all the time.  As we approached Beauty Pool, we were stunned by its spectacular blue water and colored bacteria frame. The pool was a bright example of a scientific wonder appearing to us as a natural work of art with its wonderful palette of clean colors.

On our way back to the cabins we again met an elk very close to the roadway. The animal posed for our cameras for a while and made his way deep into the woods. Feeling fulfilled, happy and tired, we arrived at our campground. I was not surprised that we couldn’t go to bed until the very late – such a lot we had to discuss to make our plan for the next day. Day #4 promised to be deeply explorative…

This is our last day in a wonderful Park and we are planning to spend it exploring the Madison Area, at our own pace, without guided tours, stopping by attractive natural spots on the way to our destination – the Lower Geyser Basin.

That morning, with all our baggage already packed in the car, we couldn’t resist dropping by local ice-cream shop before leaving our lodge area, which delivered a lot of extra happiness to Sashenka, who had been dreaming of ice-cream from the first day.  Wet set out to the Basin and very soon made a stop to watch a Roaring Mountain, which received such name because its slope was covered by numerous fumaroles – underground formations emitting gases with constant hissing. Although the mountain grew miles away from the roadway, we could hear its slight sulfuric whisper.

Our next stop was at a large hydrothermal Beryl hot spring – it was so superheated and was steaming so actively, that we hardly could see the pool’s beautiful green-blue water. It also smelled not very pleasantly and we didn’t stay there long.   Then we drove several miles away, and stopped to see much more picturesque view of Gibbon Falls and Firehole River. Streams of water were beautifully running upon the rocky cascades and we felt refreshed and cooled down after resting for a while nearby the falls. There I took a couple of perfect pictures of Nadia and Marina Aleksandrovna in front of natural background and now I enjoy looking at them. What can calm down better then observing water falling with such grace and power?…

Finally, we arrived at the Lower Geyser Basin area – a vast patch of land with diverse set of hydrothermal features on it. It was an afternoon time, the sun was heating, and the surface of the basin looked very dry. The whole picture appeared to me as a lifeless, barren landscape with dead tree stems sticking out of the ground like black spears. However, that picture impressed me a lot by its embracing mystery and silence. And certainly, the land was not dead at all – as we took a narrow walking trail, we witnessed a large colorful Silex Hot Spring. Its pool was filled with crystal blue water and surrounded by bright red spots with bacteria thriving on it. Nearby we watched The Fountain Paint Pot which contrasted against the neighboring hot spring by its grey colors of dried mud. This mud pot was bubbling slightly, reminding us of constant volcanic underground activity and obscure magma processes. Walking along that boardwalk, I enjoyed taking pictures of bright bacteria spots and dried plants as they were knotted in unique shapes.

We all were fulfilled with our amazing experience; we collected mounds of wonderful, inexplicable emotions to share and to recollect in future. The Park was a personal discovery for each of us; everyone had their own store of precious impressions.  Zhenya and Sasha only regretted not meeting a Grizzly bear, but still they agreed that until then they had never been exposed to so many natural and scientific wonders.  We left Yellowstone through the west gates and one more time enjoyed old “Wild West” part Butte city. The next day we had to drive back home, and the drive promised to be spectacular for the whole Montana was abundant with majestic mountains and wide crop fields.

This journey was truly unforgettable!  Thank you, Yellowstone National Park!…
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Map: Bellevue – Yellowstone National Park

08/16

Bellevue – Washington,  Idaho and Montana – Bozeman

08/17

Gardiner, Roosevelt Arch – North entrance to the Yellowstone Park

the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone;

Artistic Point

Lower and Upper Falls

08/18

Mammoth Hot Springs area

Mud Pots area

Uncle Tom’s scenic point – the Yellowstone River

Lamar Valley

08/19

Norris Area

Yellowstone Lake shore

the Old faithful Area

08/20

Madison Area

Roaring Mountain

Beryl hot spring

Gibbon Falls and Firehole River

Lower Basin Area

Leaving the Yellowstone through the west gates – Butte city

Bozeman – Bellevue