Yellowstone National Park, 9/15

Yellowstone is littered with hot pools:  some bubbling/spewing, some not; some shallow, or not; some highly acidic, others boiling hot.  Yes, despite repeated warnings, people have actually tried to walk toward these pools; some lived to brag about it. 

The pools can be translucent with stunningly beautiful colors which dazzle the eye; or opaque with curves, angles, twists, turns, and forms which rival our most bizarre imaginings.  The circus of colors is caused by our ancient, tiny, and extremely busy little friends, the thermophiles.  

The number of active geysers at Yellowstone is staggering.  Some, like Old Faithful, erupt on a predictable schedule; others, whenever they want; some are short-lived, others flaunt their majesty for half an hour or longer.   They spit, hiss, roar, rumble, and (occasionally) shake the ground.  Their schedules are affected by other forces, like earthquakes.  So far this year, Yellowstone has had over 1000 earthquakes; the latest being a 3-point quake near Old Faithful one-half hour before we arrived.      

Grotto Geyser got its unusual shape by erupting in a grove of trees.  The trunks became part of the cone.

We were fortunate to see Lion Geyser erupt.  Its eruptions are unpredictable. 

Old Faithful Geyser from a distance, more impressive than close up. 

 We got lucky again when we arrived early (yes, thanks to Jim, Anne actually arrived early) at Castle Geyser, whose eruptions are somewhat predictable, give or take an hour.  Its eruption began shortly after we arrived and lasted 20 minutes… 

…ending in long blasts of steam.