Yellowstone

Sunday we drove through Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Monday we entered Yellowstone and soon after crossed the border into Wyoming. We have seen a lot already: deer as big as cars, tons of bison, and a mama black bear and her cub sleeping in a tree. When we checked in to our cabin we were warned that a bison was hanging out nearby... sure enough he was camped out about 25 yards from our front door. As neat as that was, it is also scary because bison will charge humans that get too close! We have already experienced the "bison evil eye" several times. We both cannot wait to try bison burgers just to spite them. Yesterday we went to the West Thumb geyser basin, where we saw several hot springs and sulfur mud pots. We have learned that the water colors are similar to fire colors: blue is the hottest at over 170 degrees Fahrenheit, with red as the coolest at around 116-120 degrees. These colors are created by the type of bacteria that live in each temperature range. We also went to the Midway geyser basin where we saw the Excelsior geyser and the famous Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest hot spring in the park. It was difficult to take pictures because the vapor is so thick! Of course, we also visited Old Faithful. We watched it go off twice from different angles (because the first time we were apparently in the splash zone!). Old Faithful reaches heights of 90 to 150 feet and lasts 3 to 5 minutes. It is certainly not the most impressive geyser in the park, as some get much higher and can last up to forty minutes. However, it is the most famous, because it is the most predictable, going off every 90 minutes within a twenty minute range. Some of the other geysers have ranges that are hours long, and we did not want to stand around that long! Some other cool facts: Geysers are the result of heat, water, fractures in the earth and earthquakes. They erupt because volcanic thermal areas just a few miles below the surface heat the water, and the pressure shoots the water up. Yellowstone is such a thermal area because the Continental Divide is here. Today, we are headed to Grand Teton National Park for the day!