In May, I FINALLY got to go to Yellowstone National Park – and let me say, it did not disappoint. This first post will be about the natural formations and geology (but stay tuned for the animals post tomorrow).
My favorite part of the whole park are, of course, the geysers and the hot springs. I cannot believe how colorful they could be! According to the National Parks Service, Yellowstone holds half the world’s geothermal features – WOAH. The hydrothermal systems in the park exist because underlying magma creates a lot of heat. When the heat is met with cold mountain spring water, a very hot pool of water is created.
For more information on geothermal features and the park’s geology, click here.
Geysers “explode” because rising water “bubbles out” of the hydrothermal water system, shooting a stream of water into the air.
So yes, the geysers are pretty neat. And I even waited for Old Faithful (while getting hailed on):
But, the springs are the most beautiful in the park, in my opinion. I was amazed at the variety of colors in each pool.
One setback to going to early in the spring is that the steam coming off the pools doesn’t dissipate as well because the air is cold. Because of this, I couldn’t really see Grand Prismatic Spring that well:
Check out a few of my other favorites!
The “bacterial mats” surrounding the geyser/pool areas were also vibrant:
The last thing we visited was the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone…
… which is also home to Yellowstone Falls .
Even though it could have been sunnier and a little warmer, I loved Yellowstone. I also loved the buffalo (or bison, whichever you prefer) burgers we had in West Yellowstone for dinner – yum!
Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post on part 2!
**All photos are my own.
Abbey Dufoe 
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