While Kenny Is With Me (or works): Yellowstone: Norris Geyser Basin to Madison

9.14.2023

West Yellowstone, MT

Mileage: The RV moves again tomorrow!

Today was our last full day in Yellowstone. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time here and all of the amazing things we have seen. We have both asked many times, "How do you explain this place to people?" Our answer? You can't. If you haven't been to Yellowstone you need to come. We have truly used all five of our senses experiencing this park.

Today we started at Norris Geyser Basin. It was a relatively short drive for us. We started a bit earlier so we were slightly ahead of the crowd. It was very foggy and very chilly to start. As the fog wore off the day turned into perfection. We came across this phone in the parking lot. Since there is no cell service it speaks to the remoteness of the park.

Once at Norris we listened to Ranger Michael talk about the Super Volcano that is Yellowstone. I wish we would have had the opportunity to hear more rangers during our stay. I did learn that the water that shoots out of Old Faithful is over 800 years old. That's how long it takes to enter the earth and percolate it's way to the base of the geyser. After listening to him talk we started our walk around Porcelain Basin.

There are many thermal features here with many smells and beautiful colors.

Then we walked to the Back Basin.

Vixen Geyser was very cool to watch. While it shot only 10 or so feet in the air once it was finished it sucked all of the water around it back into the hole. About 15 minutes later the cycle started over.

Porkchop Geyser blew all of the debris around it up out of the ground about 25 years ago.

Steamboat Geyer is the largest in the world. When it erupts it goes over 300 feet in the air. There is no predictable pattern for eruptions. It was quiet for over 50 years then started erupting again. Recently, it erupts somewhere between 3 and 30 days.

Artist Paint Pots is a must see. From a tiny parking lot we hiked 1/2 mile to the edge of this thermal area. The colors were amazing. The boardwalk led us up the side of a hill where we could look down to see the various colors.

The mud pots were cool so I filmed them in slomo. This video is 3 minutes long. whoops!

Beryl Spring was a short stop right next to the road. It is beautiful with a deep blue color.

Our final stop for the day was Gibbon Falls. The falls splits into ribbons of water as it goes over the cliff. The views from here were also beautiful.