Yellowstone update June 11, 2012

Took a hike to Lonestar Geyser on Tuesday, May 29th.  It is a 2.5 mile trail back to the geyser along the Firehole River.  Quite a scenic and luckily flat walk.  The geyser erupts approximately every 3 hours and last for 30 minutes so it is chancy getting to see it go off.  We had to wait about one hour for the eruption but it was well worth waiting for.  The cone on the geyser is 10-12 feet tall and we have been told that it takes about 100 years for an inch of the cone material to build up.  The scenery along the river is just beautiful and there was still some snow on the path in some shady spots. The steam and water in the eruption goes up 50-70 feet and it makes
 quite a noise.  Met a young man from China there.  He is working in the Old Faithful Lodge also in the cafeteria.  He had hiked out by himself and we gave him a ride back so he could be at work on time.  Said no one in China would offer to do anything like that and that was why he loves America.
















 On Sunday, June 2nd, we went to Jenny Lake in the Tetons with a group from our dorm, rode the boat across the lake and hiked the Inspiration Point trail.  They had to hold the boats departure up for a few minutes until a bear left the dock on the other side of the lake.  It is 2.9 miles from where the boat drops you off, up a very secnic and steep trail - over 600 feet in elevation rise.  Most of the first part of the trail is along side a river and up past Cascade Falls.  This is some of the most beautiful country we have hiked in this area with the Tetons surrounding you on all sides.  At Inspiration Point, Jim and I headed back down the trail while the rest of the group continued on into Cascade canyon.  Jim and I took the 2.5 mile trail around the lake back to the boat dock where we once again met up with the group.  We all continued on into Jackson Hole and had dinner at the Silver Dollar bar in the the historic Wort Hotel just off the square.  It was nice to be eating off real plates as opposed to the cafeteria trays.  Got a couple good close ups of some of the critters we encountered.  We know the one is a yellowbelly marmot but we're not sure what the black one is yet.  Sure looks like a marmot but we need to check with the naturalist to see if they come in black. They seemed pretty used to people nearby on the trail.  And finally a couple views of Grand Tetons from the trail. 








































































And last but not least a couple pics of the Upper Geyser Basin here by Old Faithful  -  Morning Glory Pool, Groto Geyser and Castle Geyser which we were able to catch going off for the first time.  It erupts about every 12 hours and lasts for 30-45 minutes.  Quite an awesome sight.








Hope you enjoy seeing our photos as much as we enjoy taking them.  More to come soon.

Ann and Jim