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Heading north past the Tetons to Yellowstone, there's smoke in the air
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Even in the haze, these Tetons are Grand
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Always a line entering Yellowstone
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A wild fire erupted a couple of miles from the RV park just as we checked in.
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Gibbon Falls . . .
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It's right along the road between Norris and Madison junctions
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Magnificent rack
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There were three of these bulls lying about, messing up traffic
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He's been well fed over the winter
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It's called the Yellowstone Line Dance
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Virginia Cascade
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There's a narrow, one way road along a gorge leading to the cascade
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This year marked the revival of the old Yellow Tour Buses
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One of the paintings that inspired Congress to create the park
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A more modern interpretation of the same scene
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The real thing - Yellowstone Falls in the Grand Canyon
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We almost never tire of this natural beauty
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No wonder the early explorers were blown away
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Next to elk, bison are the most common large animal
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Hayden Valley is where the bison roam, and also some wolves
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We saw the bison, but not the wolves
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Bison are huge
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One pelican and a bunch of geese on a sandbar
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Sometimes, animal watchers were as much fun to watch as the animals
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Can run 30mph. Chooses not to most of the time
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Still losing the winter coat
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The lighter brown shapes in the grass are youngsters
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Most of the world's hydrothermal features are in Yellowstone
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A century ago, the steam and sulphur smell evoked references to Hades
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Day two of the wildfire near West Yellowstone. 4000 acres burned
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There are two young bald eagles in that nest, not quite ready to fly
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There's an ospry in the middle of the picture
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The nest was nearby
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We saw one adult in the nest, but saw no youngsters
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Cascades in the Firehole River, below the swimming hole
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The rocks are volcanic and the water tastes of sulphur
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But it sure is pretty
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The one official swimming hole in the park
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They said the water was quite warm
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Hopefully, not Al's best side
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Some hot water is very clear
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Some birds will look for food almost anywhere
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The colors come from bacteria - each color a different water temp
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We waited in vain for an eruption
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Bubbles from deep inside the earth keep the water riled
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This is a spring. A geyser would have a mineral cone.
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Might take a couple hundred years for water to seep down, get heated, and come back up
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The calcite deposited around a spring is the same stuff found inside caves
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A bison that didn't make it thru the winter
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Try to remember that the ground beneath you is riddled with fissures
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Guide books tell you how to spot an iminent eruption
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Sure enough . . .
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Thar she blows!
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Water temp in that lake is about 195 fahrenheit
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Water boils at this altitude at about 199 degrees fahrenheit
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There are lots of gasses that force the water up from way down there
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We are, of course, in one of the largest known volcano calderas
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And it's obviously still very alive
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Yellowstone last erupted 600,000 years ago
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Some days, it doesn't pay to wash the car
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This one was named the Hopeful Geyser
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No fish, but lots of microscopic organisms to add colors
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There are lifeforms here that eat minerals rather than hydrocarbons
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Those mineral-eating bacteria are the real bottom of the food chain
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Three burblers in one.
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Sometimes the air smells so bad it has to be corrosive
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A Hot Waterfall . .
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Yellowstone straddles the continental divide. Almost any direction is downhill
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Most of the park eventually drains to the Mississippi.
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It's fascinating to watch the water work
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We waited for Old Faithful - it's almost ready
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There it begins
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Every 92 minutes, give or take 10 minutes
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The most viewed geyser in the world
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And people start leaving before it's even done. Sheesh.
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Eruptions last about 6 minutes
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Still photos just can't capture the movement, or the aroma
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Trees near these geysers are slowly turning to stone
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Rainbows in rock
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Most geysers are well documented and eruption cycles known
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Places like this are popular with bison in the winter
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The ground is warmer, so the grass remains all winter beneath the snow
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So other-worldly
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The white parts at the tree bottoms are already calcified
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There are three major geyser basins in Yellowstone
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All have geysers and springs
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This geyser goes off every few minutes
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It's close to a parking lot, so gets lots of attention
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More rainbow rocks
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The water colors are so vivid
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Another geyser
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There are approx 10,000 thermal features in Yellowstone
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Only about 300 are geysers
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All the heat comes from the magma in the center of the earth
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Most places, the earth's crust is about 90 miles thick
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Here, it's about 40 miles thick.
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Yellowstone became a National Park because Wyoming and Montana both claimed it.
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The actual color is just like gold
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The colors are fantastic
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Water is very clear
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Incredible
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A geyser usually has a cone or crater around it
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There are constant earthquakes that affect geyser activity
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One of the unofficial swimming holes in the Firehole River
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Every color means a different temperature, growing a different bacteria
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Close up, this one looks kinda gooey
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Several pools, but each a little different color
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A hot pool, right next to a cool, flowing river
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This biplane is a large dragonfly - this dragonfly is a small biplane(?)
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A great place to rest
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Can't quite catch those golden ripples properly with a camera
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Such an incredible blue
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And the closeup is amazing
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More gold, shimmering
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Long distant shot of a deer across the Madison River
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Longer distance shot of a bald eagle across the Madison River
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Mama (or papa) was keeping an eye out on the youngster in this nest
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Fire burn, and cauldron bubble!
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Gorgeous blue, and very hot
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In a clear pool, you can see forever!
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Al spotted this gorgeous butterfly
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And then Judy spotted him!
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A lovely hillside walk reveals more pools
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Looks calm, but don't get too close
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Calcite deposits cover the area around many pools
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You can see the perimeters of several hot spots here
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The steam looks pretty, but smells pretty awful!
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A wait for the steam to dispurse reveals the clear depths
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Gorgeous color
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Mesmerizing
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All different, all lovely, all HOT
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This one has lacey calcite deposits all around it
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Aren't they lovely?
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Some are muddy
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This one died years ago, but left a cave behind
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Another look at the beautiful lacey deposits
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Shifting hot spots killed off this hillside of trees, leaving white skeletons
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The park has several great spots to shop and eat
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A gorgeous, deep pool next to Yellowstone Lake
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The runoff is so fascinating
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Can't get enough of those colors
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Lovely, dark and deep
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Many of these pools are right next to the lake
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Beautiful blues
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Lots of people were heard complaining about the sulphur smell
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All of this runs off into the lake
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At some times of year, this geyser cone is covered by lake water
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People used to do stuff like poach eggs in thise geysers
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Wade out in the lake and fix breakfast?
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These are just under the lake surface most of the year
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A figure-eight boardwalk gets you near dozens of thermal features
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Hot runoff flows into the lake at many places
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More fascinating colors
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Another deep, blue pool
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Two pools are separate thermals, but connected on the surface
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Another lakeside thermal pool
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That's Ledge Pool
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Closeup of Ledge Pool
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Gotta be hard coming up with names for all these pools
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They had a map, but we were reading it backwards, and got confused!
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So we have no idea what the name of this is
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All the pools are unique
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Ephedra Spring
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Twin Geysers, dormant for now, but maybe not forever
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A string of blue jewels
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A family of hot springs
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Twin pools
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Looking out over Yellowstone Lake
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Looking across Yellowstone Lake to the historic Lake Hotel
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Many boats give tourists lake excursions
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Al heads to the Lake Village store for refreshments
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Inside the Visitors Center and Museum at Fishing Bridge
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Fishing Bridge today - no fishing allowed
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Fishing Bridge in the '60s, before they protected the cutthroat trout spawning grounds
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Pelicans fish for trout as they return to their spawning grounds
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Fishing buddies
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Oooh, I see one!!
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I'll fight you for it!
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Shoot - all I got was a beak full of water
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Fishing buddies
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I see another one!
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What're YOU looking at?
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Fishing requires some calisthenics
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With patience, everybody gets fed
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A ba-a-a-d hair day
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Mud pots
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Percolating
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This one has a ph acidity slightly lower than battery acid
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Trees really struggle in this environment
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Bubble, bubble
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They fence off fumaroles in the parking lots
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Not the ancient herds, but still an impressive number
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And lots of babies
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There are wolves in this valley, but we didn't see them
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This guy has the right of way as long as he wants it!
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Good shot of the nest, but the eagle was hiding behind the branch
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A closeup of Rustic Falls, on the way north to Mammoth Hot Springs
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Rustic Falls is a favorite spot to take pictures
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Look the other way, you see the suspended roadway of Golden Gate
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Mammoth Hot Springs isn't as active these days, but still spectacular
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Three bus loads of tourists shared the Terrace Grill with us
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Yes, we have these at home, but that rack is still spectacular!
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Only a half mile up hill - we can do that!
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It does look wraith-like. And worth the climb
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We didn't take the covered wagon ride, but it sure looked like fun
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Such an incredible vista
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The rock deposits hang over the roadway
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Two nearly identical rock ledges, deposited millions of years apart
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Those vertical ridges are really impressive
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The river above Tower Falls
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In the distance, they watch us, watching them!
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A rock spire near Tower Falls
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Tower Creek flows into the Yellowstone River
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An impressive view
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Tower Falls - 135 feet
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We went the back way over the Washburn Range, the old Indian route
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Another view from the Washburn route
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That's the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone past the trees
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All this lineup for one elk!
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We had to go to this discovery center for our grizzly and wolf sightings
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West Yellowstone has lots of artistic bison around town
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A grizzly hunts for food, hidden by the staff at the discovery center
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The grizzly swimming hole is much frequented
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A wolf prowls the perimeter of his enclosure
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Time for a nap
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A shady spot from which to look at the tourists
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Growlin' and prowlin' and sniffin' the air
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Recess over - time to go in
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Polar bear exhibit inside the discovery center
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They let the bears out to play in shifts
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Ravens hang around for scraps
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Ah, I found something yummy
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Two rather large Teddy Bears