Yellowstone National Park
August 8, 2012 - Yellowstone National Park: Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic (Midway Geyser Basin), Lower Falls, Yellowstone Canyon
Old Faithful was named in 1870 during the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition and was the first geyser in the park to receive a name. It is also known as one of the most predictable (as indicated by its name) geographical features on Earth, erupting almost every 91 minutes. The geyser, as well as the nearby Old Faithful Inn, is part of the Old Faithful Historic District.
Midway Geyser Basin contains a small collection of mammoth-sized springs. Midway is part of the Lower Geyser Basin, but because of its isolated location between the main features of Lower and Upper geyser basins it became known as Midway. Rudyard Kipling, who visited Yellowstone in 1889, immortalized this basin by referring to it as "Hell's Half Acre." Even today it is still remembered by that name. Despite its small size Midway possesses two of the largest hot springs in the world. Grand Prismatic Spring, nearly 370 feet in diameter, sits upon a large mound surrounded by small step-like terraces. The other feature, Excelsior Geyser, erupted nearly 300 feet high before the 1900s. It is now a dormant geyser and is considered a hot spring, discharging more than 4050 gallons of boiling water per minute. Other colorful springs include Turquoise Spring and Opal Spring, known for their pale and dark blue colors.
The Lower Falls are 308 feet high, or almost twice as high as Niagara. The volume of water is in no way comparable to Niagara as the width of the Yellowstone River before it goes over the lower falls is 70 feet , whereas Niagara is a half mile. The Lower Falls descend from the 590,000 year old Canyon Rhyolite lava flow. The Lower Falls of the Yellowstone is still the largest volume major waterfall in the Rocky Mountains of the United States. The volume of water flowing over the falls can vary from 63,500 gallons at peak runoff to 5,000 gallons in the fall.
Read MoreOld Faithful was named in 1870 during the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition and was the first geyser in the park to receive a name. It is also known as one of the most predictable (as indicated by its name) geographical features on Earth, erupting almost every 91 minutes. The geyser, as well as the nearby Old Faithful Inn, is part of the Old Faithful Historic District.
Midway Geyser Basin contains a small collection of mammoth-sized springs. Midway is part of the Lower Geyser Basin, but because of its isolated location between the main features of Lower and Upper geyser basins it became known as Midway. Rudyard Kipling, who visited Yellowstone in 1889, immortalized this basin by referring to it as "Hell's Half Acre." Even today it is still remembered by that name. Despite its small size Midway possesses two of the largest hot springs in the world. Grand Prismatic Spring, nearly 370 feet in diameter, sits upon a large mound surrounded by small step-like terraces. The other feature, Excelsior Geyser, erupted nearly 300 feet high before the 1900s. It is now a dormant geyser and is considered a hot spring, discharging more than 4050 gallons of boiling water per minute. Other colorful springs include Turquoise Spring and Opal Spring, known for their pale and dark blue colors.
The Lower Falls are 308 feet high, or almost twice as high as Niagara. The volume of water is in no way comparable to Niagara as the width of the Yellowstone River before it goes over the lower falls is 70 feet , whereas Niagara is a half mile. The Lower Falls descend from the 590,000 year old Canyon Rhyolite lava flow. The Lower Falls of the Yellowstone is still the largest volume major waterfall in the Rocky Mountains of the United States. The volume of water flowing over the falls can vary from 63,500 gallons at peak runoff to 5,000 gallons in the fall.