Grand Prismatic Overlook Trail

Thirteen years ago when we took a family vacation to Yellowstone, nobody but me wanted to hike the Grand Prismatic Overlook Trail.  Being outvoted 4-1, we didn't hike the trail.  But I always hoped to do it some day.  When I visited Yellowstone again in June the vote to do the hike was unanimously in favor: 1-0. :)

The trailhead provides a pretty typical Rocky Mountain scene, with the telltale addition of plumes of steam rising from some of the geothermal features.

I set up my tripod very carefully by a pond along the trail to capture this reflection -- so carefully that people passing asked me what I was shooting!  I told them just the reflection and they seemed disappointed.  Their loss.

When I reached the overlook I'm sorry to say I was a bit underwhelmed by the view.  I had been building it up in my head for 13 years.  I'm not sure what the conditions have to be to get so little steam that you get a clear look at all the vivid colors.

The trail was flanked by many blooming wildflowers, including Saskatoon ...

... Dark-throated Shooting Star ...

... and Silvery Lupine.

A few small birds also perched in some of the (dead) trees, like this slightly ruffled Mountain Chickadee ...

... and this more composed Tree Swallow.

I like some of the eeriness of this shot that I got once I descended from the overlook.  The people in the lower left provide some helpful context on the enormity of the steam cloud that rises from the spring.

I had actually planned to spend the rest of the day in the park, camp one more night in Ludwig, and return home the following day.  But after this short hike I felt that I'd gotten everything I wanted out of the road trip, so I came home a day early.  Seven nights in a campervan and a week without a shower were enough for me!

Related Links:

• Yellowstone Thermals, Part I
• Yellowstone Thermals, Part II
• Yellowstone Wildlife 2023