The weather was pretty cold that night with scattered rain/sleet/hail bursts but we were just fine in our 10 degree sleeping bags that zip together into one big bag. Although the tent is old and worn it kept us nice and dry that night. We were ready to get started so we had a quick, no-cook breakfast and packed the car with the idea of picnicking later. Today we were going to delve deeper into the trails and side-trips along the road between Madison and Old Faithful. We'd seen the signs for some the day before and others were recommended by people we'd met so far.
Our first stop was Firehole Canyon Drive, just south of our campsite in Madison. It was just a short drive that took you closer to the Firehole River and National Park Mt. Then there was a stop at Firehole Falls. Toward the end of the little side road there was an area where swimming was allowed during parts of the year. Though now it was strictly closed as the ice pack in the high country was melting for spring and all the rivers were full and raging.
Next we continued south and decided to stop at the Nez Perce picnic area to cook up some coffee and enjoy the scenery for a bit. After setting-up the percolator we walked down toward the Firehole River where there was a guy fly fishing and a herd of bison were crossing the river. Eventually a small group broke off from the herd and started heading in our direction. As they came by we noticed that the one in the front was wounded near its back leg.
Here's a video of how close they came to us and our table. Here are some bison we saw fighting just after the wounded one passed us.
Though the ones that passed us didn't seem too dangerous we were both thinking about the flyer the Ranger gives you at the Park's entrance. Fortunately, they passed us by and when we could get back to the percolator our coffee was ready!
Next stop was the Firehole Lake Drive. This drive had been recommended by the couple we talked to at Old Faithful's observation point the day before. It was nice that it was off the main road and you could take your time getting close-up shots of the pools. Also, once we learned that there is a different type of fauna that grows around some of the vents like these yellow flowers, we could recognize how many vent there were in a field just by counting the groups of yellow flowers. Some of the boardwalks led you right over a run-off of a hot spring and you could get a close shot of the bacteria mats that form in all the hot liquids. The bacteria mats can be very confusing sometimes because they may form over a pool of boiling acid. Hikers are warned to watch their step around thermal features so as not to fall through the delicate mat and into real trouble. This drive featured Great Fountain Geyser which is just huge. We were lucky enough to catch it going off as we were approaching it. When you consider that these cone geysers grow at a rate of about an inch-or-so a century, Great Fountain Geyser is really old!
Next we headed to the Old Faithful area again. We were going to picnic there first then take some of the hikes nearby. Now it was the begining of Spring in Yellowstone and though there was snow on the ground most of the Park had been plowed and conditions were not worsened by the snow. Except in the Old Faithful picnic area where we couldn't use the grills. No problem, we had deli meats, cheese, and fresh bread for sandwiches and plenty of chips and snacks to munch. After lunch, we caught another Old Faithful eruption and Bonnie and I each had our picture taken with it then we headed down the geyser trail behind the Old Faithful park. There were more blue pools and colorful orange run-offs at the beginning of the trail but by the end of it, the pools had become multi-color like Morning Glory Pool and Chromatic Pool and this newly formed pool. We found out that each color is caused by a different bacteria that thrives at a different temperature. So the pools are one color in the center where the temp is the highest but then as it cools at the edges a different color bacteria forms. Pretty cool! The trail also featured tiny geysers which you might not think were active but because it was so cold that day there was a bright puff of steam coming up and out of these little holes. Then there was Sawmill Geyser which made a really choppy sound and erupted very violently. But when we passed it again on the way back, it had stopped erupting and the ground around the hole was all dried up as though it had never erupted in the first place. Another interesting thing was that when you looked out into the wilderness, you could see the steam from dozens of other thermal features. The bacteria mats along this trail were amazing! The variety was really incredible in that some looked like muddy streams, this one looks like a coastal shore from above, some looked like brain coral, and a few formed islands in the runoff from the springs, and this one was just too odd not to show.
Sawmill Geyser as it winds down. This one shows the ferocity with which these pools boil.
Then on our way back as we approached Old Faithful we got to see it erupt again -- our third so far! By this point we were ready to head back to the campsite and chill for a bit. But on our way we were treated to a grey wolf making it's way through an open field and I was only able to get these three blurry pics. That's O.K. we got to see a wolf!
That night we started dinner a little later to time it with the darkness and had steak and fire-baked potatoes. It was cold again that night with more rain and sleet and this time the inside of the tent got a little wet. Not too bad but enough to be aware of it.