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Old Faithful Geyser and Other Geysers in Wyoming

0 comments | Thursday, June 19, 2008

Try a little search online for Old Faithful Geyser at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, and you'll see millions of search results. That is because the Old Faithful Geyser was the first geyser in the park to receive a name in 1870.

It was a great experience to finally watch Old Faithful erupt like a little volcano, however with gallons of boiling water instead of molten rock or lava.

When we arrived at the scene, Old Faithful was already spewing its last steam and we had to wait for almost 90 minutes for the next eruption to occur.

The more than an hour of waiting wasn't useless at all, there were other smaller geysers to see within the Old Faithful area that were erupting every now and then (more than 300 geysers at Yellowstone National Park ). A network of wooden ramps zigzagging the geysers were built to cater curious tourists who'd like to see the small craters at a close range.

While walking around, I saw a number of hot springs that have never erupted since. They simply give off steam while water boiled and bubbled at the surface. It was a beauty to watch them. There were a few that spit off mud and few others that looked splendid with the blue sky reflecting the little bubbles on their craters.

Few minutes before the Old Faithful showcased its grandeur, I had already fixed myself at the perfect viewing location, rubbing elbows with the rest of other tourists, eager to take pictures and a video of the world's most famous geyser!

The first sign of eruption, those little shoots of steam, made me so excited (heard so many side comments from others: "it's coming", "here you go", "it's almost there", like someone is having sex). For the first few seconds, I didn't touch my camera. I simply gazed at the sight of Old Faithful, as it forced thousands of gallons of water out of its vent. It wasn't a long eruption, about 3 to 4 minutes only. But it was enough to take pictures and a video to remember the moment by.

Here are few facts I gathered about Old Faithful:
- 3,700 to 8,400 gallons of water are expelled per eruption, depending on the length of eruption.

- Old Faithful's height ranges from 106 feet to more than 180 feet, averaging 130 feet.

- Its eruption length and height, and time between eruptions varies from day to day and year to year.

If you are planning to go to Old Faithful at the Yellowstone National Park, visit the nature's wonder on summer around June and July.

By the way, did I mention that there is a 24-hr live webcam that sends a new real-time photo of Old Faithful Geyser approximately every 30 seconds? I told my brother in the Philippines that I'd gonna face the camera and wave for him. I did. But he didn't see me.

I will be writing more about my trip to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming in the coming days.

Labels: Tourist Attraction, USA Blogging