Here There and Everywhere

Yellowstone: Early Morning on the Travertine Terraces

 

The sun is shining, and we slept wonderfully. The cabins have no heat, and no air conditioning. We slept with the window open; it is very quiet in the cabin area. It is early – maybe 6 – when we get up and go to walk the lower terrace while the sun is rising.

It is COLD! We are all bundled up and I even wore socks with my sandals; fashion faux pas maybe but I don’t care, my toes are toasty and I take the socks off when we have finished the hike – it’s warmed up considerably.

Here is a photo from inside our cabin of how people toured the terraces back in the day.

This is the famous “Liberty Cap.” I see a grumpy man’s face under the cap, do you? Look for the downturned mouth.

The sun is rising, and in the hour we spend hiking from view to view and up to the upper terrace, we see only two other couples, and one single.

 

 

Did I mention it was cold? Really cold?

I want you to see how close we are to the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel; you can see it at the top of the photo. I remember counting these steps, a lot of steps, going up and up and up, but now I can’t remember how many there were. It was daunting looking up, but exhilarating looking down.

 

 

Much of the boardwalk is still covered in frost, but the sun is bright and warm, and there are places with no frost at all.

 

Some of these photos I am putting in so you can see the variation in colors depending on the minerals leached, and the amount of time exposed to the elements.

 

 

This part really reminds me of Pammukale, in Turkey. In Turkey, people bathe in the hot springs. I can’t imagine. You could get really badly burned in some of these springs.

 

 

 

 

 

On the upper terrace we came across this: a boardwalk viewpoint is now off limits; it is sinking. We contemplated how difficult it must be to install these boardwalks to allow visitors to safely walk these terraces, and how difficult it must be to repair, maybe impossible. The ground is constantly shifting and reforming. How to balance the need for the tourist dollar to preserve and protect the park with the costs of keeping the visitors safe and amused.

 

 

 

I am just a sucker for this terrace formation process. It is endlessly fascinating. Does anything like this exist anywhere else in the United States?

 

 

 

It is barely 0730 and a few other visitors are arriving. We feel so blessed to have had this beautiful morning on the terraces.

June 25, 2019 - Posted by intlxpatr | Adventure, Environment, Exercise, Geography / Maps, Photos, Road Trips, Travel, Turkey