  Most famous of all geysers is Old Faithful. It is everything you would expect to see in a geyser. Old Faithful has the showman’s touch, as well. With a rumbling fanfare and roll of drums beneath the thin shell of the earth, Old Faithful goes into action. Then a hissing, boiling pillar of water spurts into the air. Rapidly it gains momentum until it reaches a height of 140 feet or more. For four minutes it continues to play, and then gradually dies away. Tiny wisps of steam linger a moment, and then disappear. Old Faithful puts on its show within a few minutes of a specified time. The average interval between eruptions is 65 minutes. It is staggering to conceive just how much water Old Faithful hurls skyward during each of its extraordinary performances. It has been estimated, however, that in a single day this geyser discharges approximately 250,000 gallons of water. To see Old Faithful at night is, perhaps, the most wondrous sight of all. A giant searchlight is thrown upon its towering plume, and the steaming column of water, thus caught in the vivid, white light, presents a spectacle which becomes an everlasting memory of your trip to Yellowstone. Old Faithful reaches for the clouds Old Faithful reaches for the clouds Other GeysersNumerous other geysers equal or excel Old Faithful in volume or height, but most lack its regularity. The Giant Geyser exceeds all others in the amount of water expelled. Its jet of steaming water sometimes reaches 250 feet, and continues for an entire hour, but it gives no advance notice of when it will burst forth. Visitors examine the weird crater of Comet Geyser Visitors examine the weird crater of Comet Geyser Other colorful geysers include the Beehive, Riverside, Grotto, Castle and the Sawmill. Their descriptive names are derived from their fantastic and unusual formations. For sheer individual splendor, the Grand, Giantess and Fountain Geysers are noteworthy. Pools and SpringsWhen you gaze into Firehole Lake jets of hot gas can readily be seen. Since they look like flame, it is easy to understand why the early trappers called this lake “Firehole.” There are other odd sights in the basins. Fountain Paint Pot looks like a pot of boiling paint, but it is merely colored clay. Morning Glory Pool is so named because of its flower-like cone. Black Sand Pool is a hot spring. Sapphire Springs is accurately named. It is as blue as the gem itself. The Continental DivideAfter leaving Old Faithful you will soon come to Kepler Cascade. Here a whole series of captivating waterfalls descend about 150 feet, the magic waters singing as they fall. Continuing on toward Yellowstone Lake—your next stop—you cross the Continental Divide. The Divide crosses the southwest corner of the Park. This immense watershed was created by the tablelands of the Rocky Mountains from which the drainage is easterly or westerly. Eventually the flow on one slope reaches the Atlantic Ocean, and the flow on the other slope finds its way to the Pacific Ocean. Gibbon Falls Gibbon Falls Steaming Beryl Springs flows into the Gibbon River Steaming Beryl Springs flows into the Gibbon River Famed Fishing Bridge entices hundreds to try their luck
Famed Fishing Bridge entices hundreds to try their luck |
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