Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone’s natural beauty leaves little doubt why it was declared America’s first national park. Lodgepole pine forests, glass lakes, snowy peaks, abundant wildlife, and gurgling, sputtering geysers make a steamy, sulfuric oasis of this ancient volcanic caldera.

But Yellowstone is a victim of its own beauty and reputation. When I was there on Monday (after a quick stop at the Buffalo Bill Dam outside Cody, Wyoming--the tallest dam in the world when it was built in 1910), the park's geyser-field walkways were mobbed with tourists, detracting considerably from the peace that accompanies most national park visits. At some points, it felt more like an amusement park than a national park.

Seeing the entire park in a day is impossible, I had no intention of doing that. I wanted to drive through to get a general sense of the landscape and see three sites in particular. I made it to all three, and hit a few bonuses along the way.

Old Faithful, the first site of the three, sits at the edge of a large field of geysers giving visitors something to wander through while they wait for its 50 feet jets of water every 90 minutes or so. The fountain of water itself, blasting for over a minute to varying heights, is as impressive as the geyser's timing.

The second site, Grand Prismatic Spring, is the largest thermal feature in the park and the third largest in the world at about 370 feet across and 170 feet deep. Seeing it from the walkway gives you an up-close view of the algae and bacteria infusing the spring with toxic colors. The best way to see Grand Prismatic Spring, however, is by climbing the hill behind it.

My final must-see, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone alone is worth the trip. I was smitten at first sight. Artists Point on the south rim provides a wide panorama of the lower falls and first few miles of the canyon colorfully carved by the Yellowstone River. The higher north rim provides even more stunning vistas of the churning green water.

As an added bonus, I got to see a number of other springs, geysers, and mud pots throughout the park as well as two black bears foraging for food on a hillside as I exited around 7 p.m. About fifteen miles into Montana, I grabbed a campsite in Gallatin National Forest for the night.