Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Separated from his group on the southern shores of Yellowstone Lake in September 1870, the 54-year-old tax
inspector soon lost his bearings and promptly broke his glasses. His horse then bolted, taking all Everts' equip-
ment with it save for a penknife and a pair of opera glasses (not quite as useless as they sound - they helped him
make fire!). He kept warm at night by cuddling up to hot springs near Heart Lake, until he ended up badly burning
himself. At one point he spent the night in a tree, as a pacing mountain lion stalked him from below.
After 37 days lost in the wilderness, Everts was finally discovered, shoeless, frostbitten, emaciated, delirious
and raving like a madman…but alive.
Mammoth Hot Springs
The imposing
Lower
and
Upper Terraces
of Mammoth Hot Springs are the product of
dissolved subterranean limestone (itself originally deposited by ancient seas), which is
continuously deposited as the spring waters cool on contact with air. As guidebooks love
to say, the mountain is in effect turning itself inside out, depositing over a ton of travertine
(limestone deposits) here every year. The colored runoff from the naturally white terraces
is due to the bacteria and algae that flourish in the warm waters. See
Click here
f
or more
details on the construction of the terraces.
An hour's worth of boardwalks wend their way around the Lower Terraces and connect
to the Upper Terraces Loop. The rutting Rocky Mountain elk that sometimes lounge on
Opal Terrace in fall are a favorite photo opportunity.
Surreal
Palette Springs
(accessed from the bottom parking lot) and sulfur-yellow
Canary Springs
(accessed from the top loop) are the most beautiful sites, but thermal
activity is constantly in flux, so check the current state of play at the visitor center. The
famously ornate travertine formations that characterize the terraces of
Minerva Spring
have been dry since 2002 but are still beautiful. At the bottom of the terraces, by the park-
ing area, is the phallic, dormant 36ft-high hot-spring cone called
Liberty Cap
, apparently
named after hats worn during the French Revolution. The former spring must have had
particularly high water pressure to create such a tall cone over its estimated 2500-year life
span. Across the road,
Opal Spring
is slowly converging on a century-old residence de-
signed by Robert Reamer (the architect of the Old Faithful Inn and Roosevelt Arch). Park
strategists have to decide which to preserve - the architecture or the spring.
A 1.5-mile paved one-way road loops counterclockwise around the Upper Terraces; no
vehicles longer than 25ft are permitted. The overlook affords impressive views of the
Lower Terraces and Fort Yellowstone and offers access to
Canary Springs
and
New Blue
Spring
. Highlights further around the loop include the spongelike
Orange Spring
Mound
and the perfectly named
White Elephant Back Terrace
. The loop joins the main
road near the large
Angel Terrace
.
HOT SPRINGS
