After stopping at West Thumb Geyser Basin with Mr. Gecko’s parents, we continued north into Yellowstone. We made a brief stop at an overlook for Lower Falls, where I took pictures of an osprey pair defending their nest.Then we continued across the park to Norris and turned north again to head to Mammoth Hot Springs, another area that I hadn’t visited before. To get there, you pass through an area known as the Golden Gate of Yellowstone. I was driving, so it wasn’t until we stopped at Mammoth that I realized that was where we had stopped and taken pictures.It was raining off and on when we got to Mammoth; the rain in this picture is falling on Fort Yellowstone. We stopped at the Upper Terraces first, and took the one way drive. These hot springs are outside of Yellowstone Caldera, and are built of travertine, a mineral that gets deposited by the hot water as it flows. The terraces it forms change rapidly.Some areas the water shifts course quickly…Other areas, it stops flowing over completely. These are called dormant terraces, because one never knows when the water will start flowing there again.The dried terraces form interesting shapes.Mr. Gecko thought this one looks like a face, and I agree with him.You can also find little baby terraces that haven’t been built up yet.Orange Spring Mound, on the way out of the one way drive, is another travertine formation. It has three hot springs flowing from it, and bacteria give it the orange coloring.I don’t know the name of this one, but I thought it was pretty. This one is Angel Terrace, and it’s on the way to the Lower Terraces. More rain had moved in by this point, so I didn’t take many pictures here.By the time we got to the main part of the Lower Terraces, the rain had turned to small hail. I was stupid determined, though, so I got out of the car and walked over to see what was there. The hail got bigger.You can see the size of the hail in this picture. Also, the sleeve of my jacket. Shortly after I took this, I got hit in the ear by a chunk of hail. It really stung. As I was getting ready to turn around, the hail stopped, and I was able to take some more pictures.I love the colors in this terrace, Palette Spring.Stuck in the middle of it is Devil’s Thumb. This was our last stop for the day, other than a visit to the Albright Visitor Center and dinner in Gardiner. It’s a long drive back to Colter Bay from Mammoth, but it was worth it.
Mammoth Hot Springs
22 Monday Jun 2015
Posted Parks, Uncategorized, Yellowstone National Park
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