Yellowstone

Just north of Grand Teton is Yellowstone.

Making our way into the park we stopped at Moose Falls

We hung out by the spray and ate our lunch.

Abby had the bold confidence to cross over

Louis Falls

then we got introduced to the bizarre side of Yellowstone at West Thumb Basin that has diverse geothermal activity on the shore of Yellowstone Lake and part of the supervolcano caldera

They weren't sure what to think!

We thought the colors were from minerals, but each temperature range hosts different thermophilic bacteria that have their own vibrant color.

large hot spring. used to be black, but it's cooled over the decades

rest stop at a visitor's center where we heard there was a bison carcass in Hayden Valley

photographers flocked and staked out for days

for one of these moments: we saw Grizzly #791 run down the hill, swim across the river, and over to eat dinner. After he got his fill he swam back and laid down for a nap.

we stop for swans on Yellowstone River

 

we stayed 3 nights at Roosevelt Cabins

brink of Upper Falls

 

Lower Falls with rainbow in the mist at 9:45 am

upper falls

 

Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

 

Tower Falls

small waterfalls are just as thrilling  

zippy pine marten

a highlight of the trip was our chuck wagon cowboy dinner

the coffee was delicious

they rang the bell when our steaks were ready!

wrangler in training

 

Our draft horses were Rusty & Rebel

Exciting to see black wolves in Lamar Valley, albeit from a distance

Osprey 

These guys own the road

spectacular Undine Falls

Mammoth Hot Springs (Mammoth is a town that serves as the administrative center for Yellowstone) has travertine formations that are constantly changing due to the flow of hot mineral-rich hot springs.

Geocache

North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana
Roosevelt Arch

 

illuminated at sunset for awareness of American Indian Tribes

meet Hayden

setting out to hike Mount Washburn

Big horn sheep crossing!

elevation 10,219 feet

we climbed it! and we met a cool couple from England who brought their own tea to drink at the top.

a hot walk through Norris Back Basin

 

the spring changes the soil and kills the trees

world's tallest active geyser, but unpredictable and infrequent eruptions.

last eruption: April 14th, 2025

Old faithful, on the other hand, famously erupts on average every 90 minutes. We got to see it a few times as we stayed in the Old Faithful cabins 2 nights. 

The crust around Yellowstone is dangerous and fragile. You never know when something will happen, like last year when a hydrothermal explosion resulted from water suddenly transitioning to steam in the shallow hydrothermal system beneath Black Diamond Pool. Biscuit Basin is still closed.

Mystic Falls offered opportunities to scramble and touch some hot spring water.

tour of Old Faithful Inn

 

little hike for a great view of Grand Prismatic

Interesting walk behind old faithful. We caught a show from Grand Geyer, with an encore even!

surprise rainbow on Old Faithful on our way out!

2 nights in Park City, UT we got to spend with Grandpa Pulley and celebrate his birthday.