Nature’s Victory In Yellowstone

“Choose only one master—nature.” (Rembrandt)

Note: I wish to dedicate this blog to cousin Tim whose past  knowledge from working  at Yellowstone helped me immeasurably in writing this blog. 

Moving south into Yellowstone National Park from Montana, Ruth and I once again stood in awe at the powerful forces of nature on display here. Super heated subterranean forces expelled steam and boiling liquid into the air in a wide range of geyser fields. Wild animals roamed freely along unfenced wilderness lands often acting oblivious to nearby human encounter. A free flowing river carved its horizontal path between massive canyon walls then rapidly descended at a massive waterfall. A pristinely still lake once created by a massive volcanic eruption encircled the park interior.

Our two day visit Yellowstone visit also seemed well timed in early summer to take advantage of the expected reduction in tourist travel there as a result of the Covid -19 pandemic. Yet surprisingly all areas of the park we visited seemed surprisingly busy in spite of limited lodging/food service options and Visitor Centers being closed. Animal sightings as expected would seem to be the most popular tourist activity during our stay. A brief photographic chronology of the entire duration of this visit to Yellowstone is provided below. Enjoy the scenery.

After entering the the park via Gardiner, Montana, our first park stop took place at “Mammoth Hot Springs” area. We then walked steeply uphill along wooden paths to reach a lava strewn wasteland.

Heading south at a vehicle turnoff we spotted this grazing buffalo. I was advised then to keep my distance from the animal. Other buffalo sightings soon followed.

Other animal sightings became more common at unexpected times/places during our visit.

Stopping at “Norris”vicinity, we opted for a brief overlook view of this massive geyser basin.

Someday it might be fun to try fly fishing at Yellowstone.

Continuing toward “Old Faithful”, a series of smoking geysers midway to there captured my photographic interest.

Waiting for the suspense of an “Old Faithful” eruption, we made time for a loop route around the surrounding geyser field.

After a one hour wait , we joined a sizable crowd on benches to witness the “Old Faithful” eruption.

Proceeding east to Yellowstone Lake, we observed colorful shoreline geysers at West Thumb basin.

Stopping frequently as we traveled north and east along this serene lake , these towering peaks in the background captivated my attention.

Our tour ended at the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone , where we witnessed the spectacular waterfall descent of the river along the Lower Falls Overlook at “Inspiration Point.”