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Stunningly Scenic!!.... Yellowstone Nat'l Park Pt.1

Yellowstone represents more about US than Niagara Falls or the Statue of Liberty!! This park is pure magic! Dazzling pools of rainbow colors, steam sprouting from the ground, geysers and waterfalls, generous wildlife, and so much more. Yellowstone is the first park I visited in the States and it still remains the best, I have witnessed so far, by a country mile! We started our journey from Salt Lake City....the gateway to so much natural beauty in and around the state of Utah. Salt Lake City is the hub of all natural activities in the United States -- from the Mighty 5 National Parks (Zion, Bryce, Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef) that cover much of Utah to the breathtaking drive from Salt Lake City to Yellowstone or from Salt Lake City to Grand Canyon, the place is a perfect escapade from the humdrum of daily life.

Fellow Characters: I was joined by my close confidante, Ritesh Parikh, and by my professor Dr. Partha Bhattacharya from India; ' Look Ayan! I am an avid trekker to the extent that I even took my wife to the Mawali Pass trek in the Garhwal Himalayan steps during our honeymoon',. 'So?', I asked back. He kept quiet and smiled. His reticence suggested that the trip better be worth remembering and should come close to the Himalayan extravaganza in terms of natural wowness (He was already bored of the humid weather and undulating plains of Michigan) . Parikh on the other hand, was more of a logistics manager. He has already garnered followers with his immense deal-securing skills. Before our trip, he made sure that the hotel, car and other associated things guarantee the best value in their price and that we are not overpaying for them. So there they were in a trip together; 2 people with extremely contrasting traits -- one who always talked and joked, the other seldom uttered a word; one who liked to complete a hike as quickly as possible with the impending lunch/dinner motivating him, the other took his own sweet time as he never missed a photographic opportunity. The 'clash of titans' happened at the end of day one, when there was a fleet of bison behind our car, grazing on the savannas in the Yellowstone Valley. We all were starving and the sight of bison tempted Parikh's parched taste-buds more into having a sumptuous burger for dinner. Much to his ire, Parthada stepped out of the car to take some close snaps. Devastated Parikh restored to banging his head against the dashboard of our car -- a sequence that was hilarious and summed up the antithesis of my fellow travelers. I have undertaken multiple trips with them later, but never together!

Day 1:

Itinerary: Madison Junction - Geysers - Old Faithful - Yellowstone Lake

We drove from Salt Lake city and stayed at a hotel outside the park entrance at West Yellowstone. The next morning we woke up and headed towards Yellowstone Lake. The section from Madison Jn. to Yellowstone Lake contains the heart of Yellowstone's action. Shortly after turning south at Madison Junction, we turned west onto the one-way road descending to the Firehole River. Numerous springs and geysers line the river and you might see them erupt as you drive along.There are lots of fascinating geothermal features along this road and I will resort to pictures as my words will fail to describe the majestic setting that felt so surreal. The stops and small hikes we did were at: Fire Hole Falls, Fountain Flat Drive, Lower Geyser Basin, Fountain Paint Pot, Great Fountain Geyser, Goose Lake, Fairy Falls, Grand Prismatic Spring, Midway Geyser Basin, Sapphire Pool, Upper Geyser Basin, Biscuit Basin and Black Sand Basin.

Lower Geyser Basin -- Fountain Paint Pot

Parikh and I in front of Midway geyser Basin

Black Sand Basin

Grand Prismatic Spring is one of the highlights in Yellowstone National Park!! We hiked up Fairy Falls trail to picture Point to get the best view of the spring

Finally, we arrived at the Upper Geyser Basin, and the star of Yellowstone, Old Faithful. Not the largest or most impressive geyser in the park, but consistency makes it a crowd favorite. Roughly every 90 minutes, the geyser sends a plume of steam and water 120-150 feet in the air.

Old Faithful

We continued south until we reached the Yellowstone Lake. The turquoise blue lake is huge and offers spectacular views from every angle. You can see steam coming out from shoreline volcanic activities in one place and distant snow capped mountains in another. A worthy end to a day that has been exhilaratingly beautiful and we kept keep telling ourselves that we are NOT watching TV. We stayed overnight at a hotel near the south entrance of the park.

Yellowstone Lake with Mt. Washburn in the background

West Thumb Basin near Yellowstone Lake