Up early to walk the Upper Basin. Old Faithful was going off when Cal left the Inn.
All that is left is the steam and the water running off the hill.
Old Faithful's steam rises toward the small crescent moon on the left.
The sun slowly rose over Upper Geyser Basin. The Steam from the geysers and springs rise up
in the early morning chill.
Old Faithful steaming in the early light. It is a wonderful experience to look over the valley at the steam
rising and consider the
tremendous heat roiling underneath the surface.
Returning for breakfast along the boardwalk Old Faithful once again went off.
The steam looks like cotton against the blue Wyoming sky.
We thought this little geyser was cute with all the larger ones; this little guy was
just spitting a small little stream of water all the time.
In the background is the Firehole River.
While walking in the Upper Basin across from the Old Faithful Inn, Cal came upon several
Buffalo grazing near the
boardwalk - much excitement in the area as the great beasts wandered around.
We were told many times to stay clear of the big animals as they are likely to
charge at people.
In the National Park Service Station at Old Faithful they post the eruption times for several
of the largest geysers. Grand Geyser erupts in 7-15 hour intervals and
the geyser can erupt up to 4 hours on either side of the prediction so it is hard to see.
We waited 3 hours to see Grand Geyser erupt, and it was certainly worth the wait.
Cal and Virginia Ann in front of Grand Geyser. Unfortunately, the light was awful.
Grand Geyser went on and on - long enough for us to take pictures and then have our picture
taken and then take pictures again.
It was at Grand Geyser we became acquainted with the Geyser Gazers - these are individuals
who study, watch and document each of the major geysers. They are very helpful in answering questions about the
geysers
and learning what to watch for.
Grand Geyser in the background and West Triplet Geyser in the foreground. They are connected somehow,
and the smaller geyser began filling up right before the big one blew. It is very close to the
boardwalk, so it's fun to watch.
The Geyser Gazer would come back to look at the water level in West Triplet Geyser and make
some statement on the time until Grand Geyser would erupt. When the little one did go off
it was during the Grand Geyser eruption and was overlooked.
As we returned from watching Grand Geyser, Old Faithful was readying to blow. This is a nice angle
as the grass creates a nice foreground. Also, the angle from the sun gave the Wyoming sky
a deep blue.
Driving through Hayden Valley we can upon a heard of Buffalo. They came very close to the car.
Several hundred tourists stopped to take photos along the road where they were grazing.
One lady pleaded with her husband to get into the car as he got closer and closer to the beasts.
The Buffalo were thick - great to see so many of the large animals so close. We were able to park and
take photos from the car.
We drove way north to Tower Junction to see the Tower Falls. We wanted to see the falls as
they are so beautiful in the tour books, and it did not disappoint us.
Just a few yards off the road - the hike is moderate. If you want more exercise you can
hike to the bottom of the falls.
On the way back we visited the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.
This is Lower Falls and is a grand waterfall. Shot from the North Rim at Lookout Point,
there is a road with easy access to observation points on the North Rim. There is also
a trail along the rim. We stayed on the road.
Upper Falls is higher up on the Yellowstone River from Lower Falls and is visible from the
South Rim.
While smaller than Lower Falls it is still a powerful waterfall.
Lower Falls from Artist Point.
On the Southern Rim is Artist Point where all the classic photographs of the falls
are taken.
It was a cloudy day and the canyon is not as colorful as
in the sunlight. So Cal decided to come back one morning to catch the canyon and falls in the
early morning light.