"It's raining from the ground"

A young visitor to the park asked a Ranger for an opportunity to be heard while we were touring this morning.  His revelation: "It's raining from the ground."  Think about it.  To a 7 to 8 year old it looks just like that.

A pair of large bison decided the road system in the park is easier to travel when you want to get somewhere in a hurry, rather than the fields.  They sauntered side by side along one of the main roads with dozens upon dozens of cars behind them.  We were in the other lane and as the bison waddled on by one of them decided to come right up to our car window to take a look.

Photo courtesy Brian Santacrose.  Bison can run very fast if they want to do so.  This pair just needed to get from one place to another and the roads are easier to travel than the back country.

Our morning started in Norris Geyser Basin.  Norris changes rapidly.  Sometimes daily.  It is the most unpredictable part of the park, which is what makes it fascinating to visit.

 Some of the rain from the ground shoots high into the sky.  Some of the geysers erupt every five minutes.  Some once a day.  Others are completely unpredictable.  The one above gives little eruptions frequently, but other times it roars with water spraying 400 feet into the air for up to 40 minutes.

 Vixen Geyser erupts very frequently this summer.  Sometimes every five minutes.  Last summer it was a quiet geyser.  This year it has lots of energy and when the eruption is finished it cleans up after itself.  Most of the water goes back into the hole from where it came.

 Despite all the geological turmoil life finds a way in the park.  There are patches of wild grasses that can only survive on fresh water.  There are hundreds of wild flowers nearly adjacent to thermal features.

 See the splatter on the guard rails?  It's from hot mud.  I took some video of the mud pots in front of the group.  This was the thick mud, the looks a bit like Cream of Wheat hot cereal when it's nearly done.  Thick with bubbles of steam shooting upwards.

 Sometimes the juxtaposition of the beauty is striking.  This waterfall can be seen along Firehole Drive.  It is also down stream from one of the areas where you can swim (at your own risk).

And only a few thousand years away from that is this shimmering pool of aquamarine water with gentle steam rising upward.  The color was a deeper blue the last time we visited but patrons insist on throwing things, usually coins into it.  A good practice in the parks is to leave only footprints and take only pictures.  Tossing coins into the ponds or soda cans into the geysers is pretty foolish and disrespectful.