TOWER FALLS AND GRAND CANYON YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

Yellowstone's main road is the Grand Loop road which serpentine's 142 miles around Yellowstone

 like an inscribed circle on the very heart of the park. This loop connects visitors to every classic gem,

 from  Mammoth Hot Springs near the North Entrance to Fountain Pots and Old Faithful near the

 West and South Entrances.  The scenic drive  offers splendid view of rivers, waterfalls, meadows,

 forests, cliffs, canyons, geysers and a myriad of wildlife 

Grand Loop road is a  primary road system in the Yellowstone National Park that covers 140-mile

 (230 km) . The road was  originally planned by Captain Hiram  Chittenden  of the US Army Corps

 of Engineers in the early  days of the park, when it was under military administration. It provide 

access to the  major geothermal areas of the park, including the Upper, Midway and Lower Geyser

 Basins, Mammoth Hot springs, Tower Fall, Grand Canyon of the Yellow Stone and lake Yellow Stone

On grand loop road,  Columnar basalt cliffs  formations overhangs the road  at Junction Butte Basalt .

Basalt is a  common extrusive igneous or volcanic rock formed from the rapid cooling  of basaltic 

lava exposed at or very near the surface of a planet or moon. It is less than 20% quartz and  less than 

10% feldspathoid by volume, and where at least 65% of the feldspar ( mineral with the   presence of 

alumina and silica ) is in the form of plagioclase.

Columnar Basalt flows formations can also be seen while approaching the Tower falls. Basalt is one 

of the most common rock types in the world . It is used in construction ( building blocks ) making

 cobblestones for road pavements, (from columnar basalt) and in making statues. Heating and 

extruding basalt yields stone wool, which is said to be an excellent thermal insulator.

Tower Fall is a waterfall on Tower Creek on the northeastern region of Yellowstone National Park. 

It is located in the Tower- Roosevelt section of the Grand Loop Road at Yellowstone.This scenic 

waterfall with an impressive 132 foot drop is surrounded by vibrant green moss . A paved pathway

 with signboards takes you from Tower falls store area to an overlook point  and provides a 

perspective view of the falls. The overlook point is  approximately 300 ft above the yellow stone river.

Tower Fall was originally called as Little falls by fur trappers.  This chastely beautiful water falls was

 renamed as Tower falls by one of the members of  Wash burn party in 1870 due to the tower shaped

 pinnacles ( volcanic rocks) surrounding it. Almond Gunnison in 1883  wrote  " Great towers, shapely

 as cathedral spires, rise on either side with slender fingers like the minarets of a mosque strangely

 colored forming a royal setting for the water which from 200 ft above falls into a the boiling chasm.

 Surroundings are much like Minnehaha falls only here is greater majesty".

The Canyon Village area of Yellowstone is one of the most majestic areas found within the Park 

boundaries.Canyon Village is located  in the center of the park. Three roads lead to Canyon: Norris is

 12 miles to the west; Tower Falls is 19 miles to the north; and Lake Village/Fishing Bridge is 16

 miles to the south. Canyon Village is a base camp for exploring the Grand Canyon of the 

Yellowstone River, one of the most popular features in Yellowstone National Park.

The canyon offers several hiking trails ranging from easy to strenuous . Uncle Tom's trail having 300

 steps takes 500 ft down to the canyon from where Lower fall is clearly visible. South Rim trail 

stretches to 3.2 miles takes you to two view points of the  Upper falls ( 109 ft down) from where Old 

Canyon Bridge is also visible. From the left overlook a glimpse of Crystal falls is also visible.

 Another trail which begins at the Grand view parking area is  the half mile  Grand view Loop trail.

 South Rim is a partially paved trail which begins at Wapiti Lake trail head on South Rim Drive near 

Chittenden Bridge. It run parallel and connect the Wapiti lake trial head with Uncle Tom's Point and

Artist Point ( 1.75 miles or 2.8 km). The trail offers striking viewpoints of both falls and canyon

 North Rim trail takes you to the brink of Lower Falls. Depending on the weather 5,000 to 60,000
 gallons of water plunges from a height of 308 ft to yellow stone river. North Rim trails drops to 600
ft and it is not recommended for people with poor health conditions. Another major trail is Red Rock
trail which  drops to 500 ft and  takes the hardy visitor closer to lower falls . The canyon was a barrier
to early  travel, but became a destination for visitors when roads made the park more accessible. 

The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is roughly 20 miles long, measured from the Upper Falls to

 the Tower Fall area.This unique natural treasure has a depth of 1200 feet  and 1500 to 4000 ft width.

 Upper and Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River add to the grandeur and make it looks like a 

enormously painted mural. Upper falls viewpoint, Artist point (one of the most photographed view 

points), Look out point, Red Rock Point,  Grand View point  and Inspiration Point  are view points

 which offers a spectacular view of the Grand canyon. Puffs of steam mark the hydro thermal feature 

in the canyon walls and the  streaking hues along the canyon walls are surreal.

The Upper Falls is upstream of the Lower Falls and is 109 ft. high. It can be seen from the Brink of 

the Upper Falls Trail and from Uncle Tom's Trail. The Lower Falls is 308 ft. high and can be seen 

from Lookout Point, Red Rock Point, Artist Point, Brink of the Lower Falls Trail, and from various

 points on the South Rim Trail. Lower falls is also known as Great fall or Grand falls of Yellowstone.

The Lower Falls is often described as being more than twice the size of Niagara, although this only 

refers to its height and not the volume of water flowing over it. The volume of water flowing over the

 falls can vary from 63,500 gal/sec at peak runoff to 5,000 gal/sec in the fall.

A third falls is located at the canyon between the Upper and Lower falls. Crystal Falls is the outfall

of  Cascade Creek into the canyon. It can be seen from the South Rim Trail just east of the Uncle

Tom's  area. This silky 130 ft water falls bounds through pine trees towards the Yellowstone river.

The Yellowstone river snakes through the  canyon  as it rushes downstream which also cause erosion

when flowing through soft  and less resistant  rocks thus increasing the depth and width of the

canyon .Yellowstone river is a tributary of Missouri river with a length of 692 miles and the largest

high altitude mountainous river in North America.

 Yellowstone river rises in northwestern Wyoming in the Absaroka Range. It is the largest and major
rivers at Yellowstone National Park, though its origin is outside the park. It is also the longest
undammed river in the contiguous North America and thus retain the natural habitat characteristics
and flows. The other major rivers at Yellowstone are Bechler, Firehole, Gallatin, Gardner, Gibbon,
Lamar, Lewis, Madison and Snake river.

Yellowstone’s Grand Canyon is not as big as the Grand Canyon in Arizona, but the beauty and
grandeur is nonetheless breathtaking. The present canyon is estimated to be 10,000 to 14,000 years
old. This recent geologic feature is believed to be the result of erosion rather than glaciation. The
canyon village complex is a part of the Mission 66 project in the park. The Visitor center which
opened in 1957 is also located 1/8 mile southeast of Canyon Junction in the Canyon Village complex.

UPPER TERRACE OR MAMMOTH HOT SPRING- YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

Mammoth Hot Springs is a large complex of hot springs on a hill of travertine ( limestone deposit)
at Yellow Stone National Park . It is one of the world's best examples of travertine-depositing hot 

springs. Limestone is the dominant underlying rock here instead of rhyolite (silica rich rock), which
 is dominant in park's other major  hydrothermal areas. This hotspring is located adjacent to Fort
Yellowstone and  Mammoth Hot springs Historic district. Fort Yellowstone was established for
military purpose while Yellowstone park was under the control of military during 1886-1918. 

Mammoth Hot Spring also known as White Mountain hot spring lies outside the caldera boundary.
 This natural sculpture  was created over thousands of years as  hot water from the  spring cooled
and  deposited  calcium carbonate on the surface. When hot water rises through limestone, large
quantities of rock get dissolved and a white chalky mineral is deposited on the surface. Mammoth hot
 spring gets its energy from the same magmatic system that fuels other Yellowstone geothermal areas.

The entrance to the Upper Terrace Drive is two miles (3.2 km) south of  the Albright Visitor Center
on the Grand Loop Road.  This road  provide access to Mammoth Hot spring, Upper, Midway and
Lower geysers basin,  Tower fall, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and  lake Yellowstone. Grand
Loop road Historic district encompasses the primary road  system in Yellowstone national park.
This    scenic drive winds for 230 km among hot springs and travertine formations.

There are  two terraces here. Lower Terrace can be reached from boardwalks at their base or from
the Upper Terrace Drive. Lower terrace area is comprised of  Opal terrace, Liberty Cap, Palette
Spring, Minerva Terrace, Cleopatra Terrace, Jupiter Terrace, Main terrace and Canary Spring.
 Upper loop  area has more incredible areas which include  Prospect Terrace, New highland terrace,
 Orange  Spring  mound, Bath lake, White Elephant Back Terrace and Angel Terrace. 

 Liberty cap is an unusual inactive hot spring at Yellowstone National Park. This 37-foot (11-m)

 cone marks the northern portion of Mammoth Hot Springs.  It received its name from the  1871 

expedition  team  by the Hayden Survey party because of its marked resemblance to the peaked caps
 worn by colonial patriots during the French Revolution. This unusual formation was created by a hot
 spring  whose plumbing remained open  in one location for a long time. Its internal pressure was 

sufficient to raise the water to a great height, allowing mineral deposits to build continuously for

 perhaps hundreds of years.

Opal Terrace of Lower terrace area received its name when it was a small spring with opal colors.
 The terrace was created by mineral laden hot water flowing through steep landscape and depositing
 minerals as step-like platforms. It was dormant until 1926  when it began to flow again and began
depositing up to one  foot (0.3m) of travertine per year. Opal Terrace, mainly composed of calcium
 rich travertine, constantly change its activity, shape and color 

The  Palette Spring is another attraction at Lower terrace, where water flows from a flat area and then
 down a steep  ridge, creating a colorful hillside palette of brown, green, and orange (the colors are
due to the presence of different heat-tolerant bacteria). This effect is much the same as an artist would
 achieve by allowing wet paint to run down a vertical surface.

With its wide range of bright colors and ornate travertine formation, Minerva Terrace and spring is
considered as the most  favorite attraction  at Mammoth hot spring. For several years in the
 early  1900's, it was completely dry. But by 1951 reports state that Minerva was again active.During
 some  cycles of activity, water discharge and mineral deposition have been so great that boardwalks
 have  been buried beneath mounds of newly deposited travertine. Consequently, an elevated and
movable boardwalk now spans the hill in the vicinity of Minerva of Lower Terrace.

This  dynamic hydro thermal area constantly changes its  features. Due to confusion related to the
intermittent nature of many of the springs in the Mammoth Area, the name Cleopatra Spring/Terrace
 has been given to at least three different springs over the years. As  the confusion developed the
original Cleopatra Spring came to be called Minerva Spring

There are approximately 50 hot springs in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. Jupiter Terrace of Lower
 terrace area  displays cycles of activity. In the 1980s Jupiter Terrace flowed so heavily that it
 overtook boardwalks several times.  It has been dry since 1992, but when active, its color and 

intricate terraces make Jupiter an appealing spring.

Main terrace  is constantly changing as new springs show up and others become inactive. Bunsen
 Peak,Terrace Mountain and Clagette Butte are the main peaks adjacent to Mammoth Hot spring
terrace. Some sections of boardwalk are wheelchair-accessible; the rest of the area has stairs or steep
 grades due to  the terrain .

 Canary spring at the lower terrace loop is named for its bright yellow color, Canary owes its

brilliance to sulfur dependent filamentous bacteria. The colors blend here in delicate tints on the
creamy rock face.

Bacteria and algae create the streaks of color seen at Mammoth hot spring terraces. Blue-green algae
 and cyano bacteria, in colors of green, yellow, orange and red, line the terrace run-off channels.
Cyno bacteria, flow of water, temperature and minerals decide the color and shape of terraces here.

There are many  unnamed springs and pools exist at Upper terrace area. Many trees seen here  on the
 hillside was engulfed by travertine and now stand as skeletons.  Many of the thermal features at
 Mammoth hot spring  changes from season to season depending on water flow  and temperature.

One can also find many other infamous terraces and springs like Angel springs, Aphrodite terrace,
 Baby terrace, Bath lake, Blue spring, Cavern terrace, Cedar tree spring, Cheops Mound, Dedolph
 springs, Devil's kitchen  spring and thumbs, Fan spring, Fissure ridge, Gelen spring at Mammoth Hot
 Springs. These individually named and unnamed features enriches the Mammoth hot spring area.

Due to the soft nature of limestone, travertine formations  grow much more rapidly  than the more
common sinter formations in the park. Due to the rapid deposition, these features constantly and
quickly change. Years of observation of the hot spring activity at Mammoth indicate that while
change is ongoing  and sometimes takes place literally overnight, the overall level of activity and
 water discharge has remained relatively constant throughout the decades. 

The Mammoth Terraces extend all the way from the hillside, across the Parade Ground, and down to

 Boiling River. Terrace Mountain at Mammoth Hot Springs is the largest known carbonate-depositing

 spring in the world. Maximum water temperature measured here is 163°F/73°C. For hundreds of
years, Shoshone and Bannock people collected minerals from Mammoth Hot Springs for white paint.

The volcanic heat source for Mammoth Hot Springs remains somewhat of a mystery. Scientists have

 proposed a number of sources, including the large magma chamber underlying the Yellowstone 

Caldera, or perhaps a smaller heat source closer to Mammoth. At Mammoth, a network of fractures 

and fissures form the plumbing system that allows hot water from underground to reach the surface. 

The water sources are  rain and snow falling on the surrounding mountains and seeping deep into the

 earth where it is heated. Small earthquakes may keep the plumbing open.

As the name suggest, Mammoth hot spring is very huge and gigantic with formations resembling
frozen waterfall .The minerals and bacteria contribute to  the beautiful terrace structures, along with
heat, natural plumbing system, water, and limestone. The Mammoth village area also contain several
thermal kames including Capitol Hill and Dude Hill.

Limestone was deposited here millions of years ago when a vast sea covered this area. Hot water with

 dissolved carbon dioxide makes a solution of weak carbonic acid. As the  solution rises through rock,

 it dissolves calcium carbonate, the primary compound in limestone. At the surface, the calcium

 carbonate is deposited in the form of travertine (rock) that  forms the terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs.

The Mammoth area exhibits much evidence of glacial activity from the  Pinedale glaciation . The
Pinedale (central Rocky Mountains) or Fraser (Cordilleran ice sheet) glaciation was the last of the
 major glaciations to appear in the Rocky Mountian in the United States. The Pinedale lasted from
 approximately 30,000 to 10,000 years ago .The summit of Terrace Mountain is covered with glacial
 till , thereby dating the travertine formation there  to earlier than the end of the Pinedale Glaciation.

The 2,990 feet Mt. Everts, seen at a distance borders the Mammoth hot spring. This mountain is
made up of distinctly layered sandstones and shales-sedimentary rocks which were deposited when
 this area was covered by a shallow inland sea around 70 to 140 million years ago.The majority of
Mt.Everts is  made of Cretaceous era sediments. Nearby is situated  the Washburn range made of
volcanic mud flow. The Washburn Range is  one of two mountains ranges completely within the
boundaries of Yellowstone.One of three  active  fire lookout towers in Yellowstone is located on the
  summit of Wash burn range while the  remaining two are placed on Mt. Holmes, and Mt. Sheridan.

Camera : Canon T5   

NORRIS GEYSER BASIN AND ARTIST PAINT POT- YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

A geyser  is a vent on Earth's surface that periodically ejects a column of hot water and steam. 

Geysers  have eruptions that blast thousands of gallons of boiling hot water up to a few hundred feet

 in the air. Norris Geyser Basin is  one of the most extreme environment on earth. It is located near

 the northwest edge of Yellowstone Caldera near the  Norris Junction and on the intersection of three

 major faults . ( A fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock, across which there

has been significant displacement as a result of rock mass movement ).

Norris  Basin is one of the most dynamic places in Yellowstone National Park.  It comprises of three

main areas: Porcelain Basin, Back Basin, and One Hundred Springs  Plain. Norris Geyser is named 
after an Yellow Stone Superintendent and is the hottest geyser basin  in Yellow Stone.  It is difficult
for plants and animals to survive in such acidic environment. The basin is really colorful due to the
 presence of many mineral oxides and bacteria known as thermophile .  Many acidic pools seen here
are  considered as the world's most oldest and hottest  pools.

Built  in 1929 - 1930, the Norris Museum is situated on a hill between the Porcelain Basin and the
Back Basin of Norris Geyser Basin. The 94-foot (29 m) by 20-foot (6.1 m) museum consists of two 

rectangular sections divided by the breezeway, which is roofed by a prominent jerkin head gable,

 framed in massive logs. The pavilions to either side are of shingle-covered frame construction on a 

massive stone base. A stone and concrete terrace surrounds the building.The museum exhibits focus

 on geothermal geology, features of Norris Geyser and plant and animal life in thermal areas.

Norris Geyser Basin provides two easy ways to explore: the Porcelain Basin Trail and the 
Steamboat/Echinus Geyser Trail.  It  provide a safe route for viewing the Porcelain Basin and Back
Basin. Porcelain Basin is open terrain with hundreds of densely packed geothermal features 
while Back Basin is forested and its features are more scattered and isolated .

Porcelain Basin presents a beautiful but desolate visage which is unlike any of the other geyser

basins in Yellowstone . The name Porcelain basin  was inspired by the  milky color of the mineral

deposited here. The mineral, siliceous sinter also known as geyserite is brought to the surface by

hot water and forms a "sheet" over this flat area.

The landscape of Porcelain basin is stark and barren which is the result of acidic  environment.

The  basin is characterized by  lack of vegetation. No plants can live in this hot, acidic, water

 emitted from the numerous thermal features in the basin. 

Porcelain Basin consist of Black Growler steam vent, Ledge Geyser, Congress Pool, Hot Springs,

 Blue Geysers, Whirligig geyser, Colorful water, Whale's mouth and Crackling lake . The water in 

Norris area is really acidic .The difference in pH allows for a different class of bacterial thermophiles

(bacteria) to live at Norris, creating different color patterns in and around the Norris Basin waters .

The Porcelain basin trail takes you to an incredible world of  clear blue springs and  passes through
  a thin strand of  trees and loops around . The blue pools are saturated with silica, which is the
 primary component of glass. Norris's thermal waters contain the highest concentration of silica in Yellowstone. 

Back basin is full of surprising sites, sounds and smells. It is alive with heats and gases from Yellow

 Stone volcano beneath. With full of geysers and hot springs tucked among trees,  Yellowstone

 volcano is very much alive  here. Back Basin is the lengthier trail at Norris Geyser Basin.  It includes

 Emerald Spring, Steamboat Geyser, Cistern Spring, Echinus Geyser, Green Dragon Spring,

Porkchop Geyser and Minute Geyser .

One of the notable attraction at Back Basin is Emerald Spring which is a clear blue pool. The water

here  absorbs all other colors of sunlight except blue which is clear case of refraction. The 27-foot

 (8 meter) deep pool is lined with yellow sulfur deposits. The yellow color from the sulfur combines

with the reflected blue light, making the hot spring appear a magnificent emerald green.

The largest geyser in the world steam boat geyser is also located at Back basin. When it erupts the
 water jet reaches a height of  380 ft in a spectacular display. Steamboat has an erratic and lengthy 
timetable  between major eruptions.Steamboat erupts over 300 feet (90 m) into the air. It  does not lie
 dormant between eruptions, instead display minor eruptions of approximately 40 feet (12 m).

Cistern Spring and Steamboat Geyser are linked underground. During a major eruption of Steamboat,

 the water in Cistern Spring's pool drains. Normally, Cistern is a beautiful blue pool from which water

 continually overflows. Cisterns spring's brown, green and orange color represents species of visible  algae and bacteria.

The Ragged Hills that lie between Back Basin and One Hundred Springs Plain are thermally altered
 glacial kames.The hottest of Yellowstone's geothermal features are steam vents (fumaroles). Sulfuric
 acid, steam and gases escape through vents in ground which create a barren and unsafe ground called
Solfatara. Here  scalding mud and steam are barely covered by hot crumbling decomposing rock.

One hundred spring Plain is an  off-trail section of Norris Geyser Basin. It  is flat,

 sandy, and extremely dangerous.Much of the underlying ground is hollow and many of the thermal

features are acidic. Most of the hot springs in this area have never been named. Cinder Pool, once

called Verma Spring, is a remote and isolated feature on the  One hundred Spring Plain.

Nuphar Lake is situated along the trail between Porcelain Basin and Norris Campground. There is
another lake called Crackling lake can be found at Norris Basin.The name of this thermal feature was
 proposed by Ed Leigh in 1967 because of popping sounds from nearby springs on its southern shore.

North of Norris is Roaring Mountain. It  is a large, acidic hydro thermal area (solfatara) with many

fumaroles. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the number, size, and power of the fumaroles

were much greater than today. The fumaroles are most easily seen in the cooler, low-light conditions

 of morning and evening.

Artist Paint Pot is  located at Madison at a distance of 4.4 miles south of  Norris Basin.  It  is on  the
midway between  Old Faithful and the Norris Geyser basin.  This small hydro thermal area offers an
array of thermal features including colorful hot  springs and two large mud pots.

A one-mile round trip trail through Artist's Paint Pot took visitors through a section of forest burned
 in 1988. The Artist's Paint Pots trail is so full of vibrant colors, comparable only to an artist's palette.
 Adjacent to this area are three other off-trail, back country thermal areas: Sylvan Springs, Gibbon
 Hill Geyser Basin, and Geyser Creek.

Rainbow colors, hissing steam, and pungent odors  greet your senses at  Norris Basin. These thermal 
areas pulsates from steam and boiling water beneath the surface a feature which appear and
 disappear often . Many of the remote  areas at Norris Basin are fragile, dangerous,and difficult.
 Traveling to remote areas in thermal areas without the aid of knowledgeable  personnel is discouraged.

Location: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Managed by National Park Service,

Phone: (307) 344-7381

Camera Used: Canon EOS rebel

Warning about GPS Systems! Vehicle Navigation Systems and GPS units may provide inaccurate information—sending drivers the wrong way on one-way roads, leading them to dead ends in remote areas, or sending them on roads which are closed at certain times of year. Make sure to use park road maps available at entrance stations.
Trailhead address: Grand Loop Road & Norris Canyon Road, Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190

.