Elks in Town

Sept. 24: Today we left the Old Faithful area and drove north, stopping at several more thermal feature areas. The first was Fountain Geyser Basin, and this small geyser is there, but is not the much larger Fountain, which was quiet.

Another famous feature here is the Fountain Paint Pots, a simmering mud geyser the bloops and pops pale gray and light pink mud. Entertaining, if not so photogenic.

Further north we stopped at Norris Geyser Basin, where this Porcelain Pool seemed to glow with an inner light from the silica dissolved in it.

Another of the microbiotic mats that caught my eye there.

This the the Black Growler Steam Vent, one of my favorite names of the Yellowstone thermal features.

Further north we stopped alongside the road because we were clued to some wildlife in the area in the usual way: other cars stopped, and people pointing cameras. We had to ask what was there, these Coyotes were so hard to see, except when they leapt up in the air. I think they were hunting mice or voles. How many Coyotes can you see?

Okay, it's just one, the best shot I could get.

We stopped for our box lunches at a roadside picnic area where we walked out in this field on a trail probably made by bison and other game.

This raven and his mate were ready for any scraps we might leave, along with some Gray Jays.

From the high plateau of central Yellowstone we descended into Mammoth Hot Springs valley, about 1500 feet lower at the bottom. On the way down we stopped at the Upper Terrace Drive to see some of the thermal features there.

All are found on and around a huge hill of white silica deposits that descend several hundred feet toward the valley in oddly beautiful terraces. This is near the top of the main terrace at Canary Spring. Looks like snow, doesn't it?

Closer, some parts look even more like ice and snow, but are powdery, flaky calcium deposited in layers over uncounted years. Some are crumbling, as you can see.

At the Orange Spring Mound you can see the process in miniature, this pile of silicates stands on a forested hilltop, and is about 15 feet high. We'll see the Lower Terrace features tomorrow…

…but now were looking forward to checking in to our cabin at the Mammoth Hot Springs hotel, seen from atop the Main Terrace.

It's a smaller cabin than the one in Moose, really more of a motel room and no kitchen, but it does have some interesting features. When we opened the door after putting our bags inside, this young Bull Elk was just next door. The park rangers soon came and shooed him away…

…but as you can see, it's a much larger problem. Apparently the female elk like the lush lawns in town, and live here all year. Now it's the beginning of Elk mating season, so the bulls have arrived to create havoc, draw crowds, and create problems for the rangers. While we had dinner in the hotel restaurant by a window, it was quite a show, with several Bull Elk each trying to herd their own group of females away from town and into the hills. The cows weren't very cooperative. Then a few Bison joined the party, and the rangers really had their hands full. We made it back to our cabin, having to detour around a group of elk, since the males can be quite cranky and dangerous this time of year. We felt sorry for the rangers, who must not get much sleep this time of year, just like the bull elks. More tomorrow.