Tuesday, October 30, 2018

Yellowstone in Pictures - Page 4

The journey continues...  

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Here is our last scenic shot from the terraces section

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and one that shows the moisture that had gathered on a small section of grass.  Props to Darlene for getting creative with her photography!

After three pages, it is time to move on from the Terraces section of the park.

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First up... The Fumaroles of Roaring Mountain which sort of looks like a moguls ski run.

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A Fumarole is an opening in the earth's crust, near a volcano, where steam and gases escape.  These are the hottest features (temperature wise, that is) in Yellowstone.

Critter ALERT!!!

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Cutie Pie

We stopped at Frying Pan Spring.  What a neat place!  

As we headed down the boardwalk....

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LIFER!!!!!  This California Tortoiseshell Butterfly (Nymphalis californica) was vacationing in Wyoming.

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What an unexpected surprise to find this newly hatched beauty.

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Frying Pan Spring

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was living up to its name and

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was a bubbling hot bed.

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The unique Chocolate Pot is noted as a moderately hot spring by Yellowstone standards.

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It is a mix of iron oxide deposits and cyanobacteria with a high tolerance for iron.

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We were not the only ones appreciating this interesting feature.

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At Artist Paint Pots things were stirring


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and the scenes were striking as always.

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Springs were spouting and steaming.

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Mudpots were gurgling and bubbling.  What a neat feature these are.  Microbes and sulfuric acid break down the rock into clay. 

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These "double boilers" are a shallow depression on top that holds water and a layer of thermal water below which produces steam with a layer of rock in between.   The lower thermal water heats the surface water and creates the neat bubbling reaction.

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This one was quiet and calm on the day we visited.

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These took on a bluish tint when at rest.

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Even when not "painted" with mud, the edges of the holes are a palette of colors on their own.

Just realized how long this post has gotten.  So, we'll leave it off there and continue with our Yellowstone journey in the next post.

See ya then!

Sunday, October 28, 2018

Yellowstone in Pictures - Page 3

Wow!  We are 4 for 4 on blog posts this week.  The sun is supposed to be shining the next four days though so we'll see what happens with that record.

We return, yet again, to the terraces section of the park.  This time, we are up at the highest level. 

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Once again, we found an area where all views were just too beautiful not to share.

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So, rather than sort through photos and feel like we aren't sharing something, we'll just post them and let you roll through.

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This upper section of the terraces was just amazing.

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Although we were simply above the other locations we have shown you in the last few posts

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something about this area felt more vast, rustic and remote.


It was still an active area


but in a quiet and serene sort of way.

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Even though there were others at the park

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many of them were moving quickly from one point to another.

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By waiting just a few minutes in each location though

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we were able to more often than not

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find ourselves alone

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even if at a distance

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in this magical place.


This area was like a large waterfall.

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It was very active

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and the water was cascading down the hill.

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We thought there was something poetic about these trees that had gotten caught up in the activity still standing strong.

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Yellowstone, established in 1872, was our first National Park.  

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The Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America.

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It has been termed a "supervolcano" because the caldera was formed by exceptionally large explosive eruptions.

It is amazing that volcanic systems which can cause devastating damage in one part of the world can also cause such beauty in another.

Well, we've reached 60 degrees today!  Time to head out and get some painting set up. 

More to come from Yellowstone...

Saturday, October 27, 2018

Yellowstone in Pictures - Page 2

Seems we are on a roll.  Mother Nature has continued to challenge our painting of van parts which means re-assembly is delayed too.  We've done everything else we can think of to occupy ourselves as we wait for things to warm and dry up.

So.... here's some more sharing from the Terraces section of Yellowstone National Park.

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Let's see.  We left you somewhere around HERE in our last post.

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The terraces and Mound Spring were so pretty.

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If it hadn't been our first stop in the park we may have spent a much longer time here.

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As it was, we were moving at a slow snails pace compared to other visitors.

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We liked both angles of this shot so you get to experience them both, as well.

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The mix of dormant or less active grays and whites with the more active and colorful oranges and greens is just so pretty.

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Liberty Cap is a unique Dormant Hot Spring Cone that now seemingly sits alone in a small field.  Very cool!

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Up and down.  This is one of the lowest sections of the Terraces.

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A very thin sheet of water was running over this entire lower section.
Maybe one day it will have layers of deeply laced pools like the upper section does.

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Looks like another cone is forming.

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Still mesmerized by all of the colors and activity.

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Some features start to look like stalactites in a cave.

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Quite a gushing waterfall.  What will it create?

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Devil's Thumb amongst other not-so-dark formations.

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The glistening of thermal activity.

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Before we take you up to higher terraces, here's a shot to remind you that the the surrounding non-actively-thermal parts of the park are quite scenic, as well.

We'll see ya in the next post...