Today was our first full day in Yellowstone Park. We decided that after breakfast we would go for a hike. The girls had picked out a hike to Ferry Falls. It was about a 6 mile hike that ended in the fourth highest waterfall in Yellowstone. The hike was through a section of forest that had been badly burned in 1988 and was now in the process of regrowing. The new growth was usually around 6-8 feet high and the old dead trees are mixed in both standing and on the ground. All together it makes for an odd look.
The hike was a nice and easy with just a slight incline. We hiked to Ferry Falls in no time an enjoyed the view.
The falls were very tall and reminded me a lot the waterfalls we had seen in Hawaii.
The water cascading down was quite loud which meant you could hear it for a good distance as you hiked up to it. This made a nice incentive to keep going.
Still feeling good, we decided to continue on to a spot called Imperial Geyser. As we walked we followed a hot spring fed stream. The stream looked harmless enough until you noticed all of the dead plant life around it. The water is often above 200º and is nearly as acidic as a car battery. I snapped this picture of a dandelion growing on a dead log in the stream. It shows that dandelions are like cockroaches - they can survive anywhere.
As we walked through a flower-filled pasture, thousands of bees buzzed loudly all around us. It was a really creepy feeling. Rogan was especially freaked out because he really hates bees as they seem to like to sting him. We power walked quickly through the area with no problems though.
As we approached the Imperial Geyser we could smell the distinctive sulphur odor that all of the geysers and hot springs in the area seem to have. We took turns blaming each other for a raunchy farts as we hiked through the steam created by the geyser. We discovered a perfect seat for all of us on a downed tree just a few feet from the geyser. We shared some snacks and drank some water as we watched Imperial Geyser bubble up and occasionally burst about 6 feet out of the water.
Apparently, Imperial Geyser exploded higher and more grandly than even Old Faithful in the 1800 and 1900’s. Mysteriously, the geyser stopped erupting totally in the 1929 and then sprang back to life in 1966.
Rogan wandered off and discovered a nearby mud pot that blurped and gurgled in funny ways. As we sat there eating and joking around, we took pleasure in the fact that there wasn’t another hiker around. We felt like we were the first people to discover this spot.
On the hike back, we essentially retraced our steps back past the Ferry Falls again. On the way, Greg laid claim to discovering what he called “Wolf Cave” which was on the rock wall of the waterfall.
Greg spotted a dirt path up the mountain which led to a good lookout point for seeing Grand Prismatic Point, a very large and colorful hot spot that we hiked by but couldn’t really see well from the trail. The climb up was steep and challenging. By the time I got up to the top, I was out of breath and my heart was really beating. Like so many hikes we’ve done, the effort was worth the reward. Greg and I took pictures of each other at the top as well as of the hot spot itself and then climbed back down and caught up with the group.
To reward our hiking effort, we went to Old Faithful village and got some ice cream. On the way back, we stopped at the Midway Geyser basin. Grand Prismatic Spring was the feature of this area, and we walked the boardwalk around it and other giant springs. We learned that the interesting colors of the hot springs are actually a living thing called thermophiles, microorganisms that are adapted to the extreme temperature (over 200º) and acidity of the springs. The springs are incredibly clear and are tempting to touch. (Kind of like a "Do Not Touch: Wet Paint Sign) Obviously, that’s not a safe idea.
On the way out we stopped to watch an osprey hunting for fish by dive bombing headfirst into the river.
We went back to our campsite and relaxed for a bit. We really liked our campsite there. It was close to the bathrooms and had a nice space where the kids could play.
Later we started cooking dinner. It was a chilly evening so we decided to cook up some soups. We had Spaghetti-O’s, chicken noodle soup, chili, and beef stew. We enjoyed watching the ground squirrels scurry around the campground.
After dinner, we decided to explore the area a bit. By the Madison campground, two rivers converge, the Gibbon and Firehole, to form the Madison River. We walked a short trail that followed along the Madison and watched people fly fishing.
Later that evening we listened to talk a naturalist about wolves. This naturalist was an excellent speaker. We learned about the impact of the re-introduction of wolves to the area in 1996. The theme of the talk was really to break down myths about wolves and to focus on how they are similar to us as humans. By the end, you really gained an appreciation for the intelligence and adaptability of this animal.
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