Our first full day consisted of exploring the West Thumb area and a 6-mile hike to riddle lake. The West Thumb area was over crowded but for good reason. When we first arrived it seemed like the hikes in the area might be a little lame and everywhere we looked there were groups of people. As we started we realized that once we started the walk the people were dispersed enough on the boardwalk that it was easy to just be with ou
r small group of four.
One of the defining characteristics of Yellowstone is that it is a super volcano. The land covers an active volcano that is so huge that when it finally blows the world will be changed. This volcanic activity is apparent throughout the park but in some areas every few steps you take leads to a geyser or a bubbling pool or a hot spring or some other variation of hydrothermal activity. All of the pools varied from one another and they even change depending on the day and/or time of day. There was truly so much diversity in the
geothermal pools. My personal favorites were the pools that had orange and yellow usually mostly around the rims of the pools. The light blue pools were definitely a close second but all of the pools in their own way were awesome and inspiring in their own way. From the small gurgles of muddy water or the vents that only steam escaped from to the huge pools that seemed to have no bottom they were all neat to see especially to see the different ones so close in proximity to each
other. The walk around West Thumb’s hydrothermal pools borders the edge of Yellowstone Lake for most of the walk. There were visible active areas even in the lake, which was neat, and there are also heated areas that we could not see beneath the surface of the lake water. One of the better known of these hydrothermal areas in the lake is fisherman’s cone. This cone was once popular for fisherman who would stand on the cone surrounding the hydrothermal area and
fish. Once catching a fish they would dip the fish still on the hook and cook it in the active cone filled with boiling water. As you can imagine this is an ideal situation. The problem with fisherman’s cone however was fisherman were falling in and being cooked. As much as people like cooked fish nobody likes a cooked fisherman so access to the cone is no longer permitted. One of the things that is so cool about this area is how dangerous these pools are. They was even a geothermal vent beneath the surface of the lake that was in the clear shape of a heart. This little heart hole itself was in the upper hump of a larger heart shaped cone. the best part about this discovery was that Brad pointed it out. They are beautiful and with the gentle steam rising from the light blue ones I can see how
it would be tempting to test the waters. I don’t know if I would be foolish enough to jump in but I can see myself testing the water with a hand or a foot, which would surely lead to pain and perhaps serious burns.
The beauty and ferocity of the area made for a striking contradiction. We were all equally impressed by nature’s display at West Thumb. There was a pool named the abyss. This pool was black in the center because it was so deep that there was no color jumping back at us. A deep blue surrounded the black in the abyss, it was
very pretty. There light blue ones that I mentioned usually had a white rim and resembled swimming pools or hot tubs. Most of the pools had patches of green surrounding their borders. These gardens stay green year round because the pools thermal energy is constant. This place would be a sight to behold in winter when the ground is covered in white snow except for the numerous steaming pools surrounded with striking green plant life all along the borders. This hike was actually more of a stroll on a boardwalk than a hike but it was awesome all the same. Mom was in the mood to try out her hiking legs and was ready to get into the backcountry so we
left the West Thumb area for more backwoods hiking experience and fewer people. We decided the nice six-mile riddle lake trail was a good place to start. This was a pleasant trail to a small lake and back. Much of Yellowstone was devastated in a fire in the 80’s so there were standing dead trees and young forests throughout the park. On this hike we saw both as well as fields of gold that waved in the wind. This was actually my personal favorite part of the entire hike. When the wind would blow the ground looked as though a conductor waving his arms to and fro was directing them. The sun added to this dramatic orchestra as the grass bent and swirled with the wind. We too as hikers were intermixed in this as the wind would randomly roll around us. Once the trees opened up to an open area this would happen. The ground was not only golden but there were many shades of yellow and green as well. There were mountains off in the distance and then there was the lake. Parts of Riddle
Lake were completely covered in lily pads. The muddy bank was like a carbon paper recording all the recent activity along the waters edge. Not only were their human footprints and most likely dog or coyote tracks but we also recognized many hoof prints of varying size and a few bear tracks. We were without a doubt in the wild. The animals are well aware of our presence however and this is to our advantage.
Animals have a healthy fear of humans as we should have of them and they try to leave us alone and avoid us, as we should with them. There are definitely times when curiosity overtakes us and this is okay as long as we both keep our distance. We were lucky enough to view some wildlife and their marks without any confrontations. During our stay in Yellowstone Riddle Lake was one of the quieter prettier hikes we did. The landscape was peaceful and rejuvenating. I think everyone in the party enjoyed the hike. This was apparent during the times when everyone became silent and we just walked on happy and content before the silence was happily broken again.
Our first full day consisted of exploring the West Thumb area and a 6-mile hike to riddle lake. The West Thumb area was over crowded but for good reason. When we first arrived it seemed like the hikes in the area might be a little lame and everywhere we looked there were groups of people. As we started we realized that once we started the walk the people were dispersed enough on the boardwalk that it was easy to just be with ou
r small group of four. One of the defining characteristics of Yellowstone is that it is a super volcano. The land covers an active volcano that is so huge that when it finally blows the world will be changed. This volcanic activity is apparent throughout the park but in some areas every few steps you take leads to a geyser or a bubbling pool or a hot spring or some other variation of hydrothermal activity. All of the pools varied from one another and they even change depending on the day and/or time of day. There was truly so much diversity in the 
geothermal pools. My personal favorites were the pools that had orange and yellow usually mostly around the rims of the pools. The light blue pools were definitely a close second but all of the pools in their own way were awesome and inspiring in their own way. From the small gurgles of muddy water or the vents that only steam escaped from to the huge pools that seemed to have no bottom they were all neat to see especially to see the different ones so close in proximity to each 
other. The walk around West Thumb’s hydrothermal pools borders the edge of Yellowstone Lake for most of the walk. There were visible active areas even in the lake, which was neat, and there are also heated areas that we could not see beneath the surface of the lake water. One of the better known of these hydrothermal areas in the lake is fisherman’s cone. This cone was once popular for fisherman who would stand on the cone surrounding the hydrothermal area and 
fish. Once catching a fish they would dip the fish still on the hook and cook it in the active cone filled with boiling water. As you can imagine this is an ideal situation. The problem with fisherman’s cone however was fisherman were falling in and being cooked. As much as people like cooked fish nobody likes a cooked fisherman so access to the cone is no longer permitted. One of the things that is so cool about this area is how dangerous these pools are. They was even a geothermal vent beneath the surface of the lake that was in the clear shape of a heart. This little heart hole itself was in the upper hump of a larger heart shaped cone. the best part about this discovery was that Brad pointed it out. They are beautiful and with the gentle steam rising from the light blue ones I can see how 
it would be tempting to test the waters. I don’t know if I would be foolish enough to jump in but I can see myself testing the water with a hand or a foot, which would surely lead to pain and perhaps serious burns. The beauty and ferocity of the area made for a striking contradiction. We were all equally impressed by nature’s display at West Thumb. There was a pool named the abyss. This pool was black in the center because it was so deep that there was no color jumping back at us. A deep blue surrounded the black in the abyss, it was 
very pretty. There light blue ones that I mentioned usually had a white rim and resembled swimming pools or hot tubs. Most of the pools had patches of green surrounding their borders. These gardens stay green year round because the pools thermal energy is constant. This place would be a sight to behold in winter when the ground is covered in white snow except for the numerous steaming pools surrounded with striking green plant life all along the borders. This hike was actually more of a stroll on a boardwalk than a hike but it was awesome all the same. Mom was in the mood to try out her hiking legs and was ready to get into the backcountry so we 
left the West Thumb area for more backwoods hiking experience and fewer people. We decided the nice six-mile riddle lake trail was a good place to start. This was a pleasant trail to a small lake and back. Much of Yellowstone was devastated in a fire in the 80’s so there were standing dead trees and young forests throughout the park. On this hike we saw both as well as fields of gold that waved in the wind. This was actually my personal favorite part of the entire hike. When the wind would blow the ground looked as though a conductor waving his arms to and fro was directing them. The sun added to this dramatic orchestra as the grass bent and swirled with the wind. We too as hikers were intermixed in this as the wind would randomly roll around us. Once the trees opened up to an open area this would happen. The ground was not only golden but there were many shades of yellow and green as well. There were mountains off in the distance and then there was the lake. Parts of Riddle
Lake were completely covered in lily pads. The muddy bank was like a carbon paper recording all the recent activity along the waters edge. Not only were their human footprints and most likely dog or coyote tracks but we also recognized many hoof prints of varying size and a few bear tracks. We were without a doubt in the wild. The animals are well aware of our presence however and this is to our advantage. 
Animals have a healthy fear of humans as we should have of them and they try to leave us alone and avoid us, as we should with them. There are definitely times when curiosity overtakes us and this is okay as long as we both keep our distance. We were lucky enough to view some wildlife and their marks without any confrontations. During our stay in Yellowstone Riddle Lake was one of the quieter prettier hikes we did. The landscape was peaceful and rejuvenating. I think everyone in the party enjoyed the hike. This was apparent during the times when everyone became silent and we just walked on happy and content before the silence was happily broken again. 
No comments:
Post a Comment