Brilliant Yellowstone

All my life I've wanted to visit Yellowstone Park and finally I did--and it didn't disappoint. It was everything I thought it would be and more. One thing that surprised me was the altitude. The caldera where all the geothermic activity takes place lies at around 7,000 feet so the air is cool and clear. We arrived yesterday and once we'd set up camp we drove straight to Old Faithful, which spouted on schedule just as we got to the boardwalk.














We visited several sites where there are geysers and fumaroles and boiling pools and mud holes dotting the ground. 
















The colours are really astounding, like in this turquoise pool.  And the colour of the water in the Firehole River is even more brilliant.

But for me the most thrilling was to see the wildlife in the park.  We saw a grizzly bear, a herd of elk, some pronghorn antelope and many, many buffalo.  I'd never seen these creatures before and they are very imposing.  Apparently they can run at 30 miles an hour so you don't mess with them.   I loved seeing the herd grazing on the beautiful golden grass with the steam from the geysers in the background.

This fellow was by himself though, far from others.  We saw him at the summit of the pass exiting the east side of the park.  He was slowly trotting up the road at about 8600 feet.  I sure hope he made it where he was heading.

Tonight we made it where we were heading--a little town called Thermopolis, which boasts the largest hot springs in the world.  We'll take a look tomorrow.