West Thumb Geyser Basin is situated on the shore of Yellowstone Lake’s West Thumb, a submerged volcanic caldera within the larger Yellowstone caldera. It was created about 162,000 years ago when a magma chamber bulged up under the earth’s surface, which it cracked along ring fracture zones, releasing the magma as lava. Once emptied, the chamber collapsed and, later, the caldera was filled with water, forming an extension of Yellowstone Lake.
The boardwalk trails at West Thumb provide easy walks that let visitors take in the beauty of the deep thermal pools and Yellowstone Lake.
While we’ve visited West Thumb Geyser Basin over the years, before 2007 we had not looked at the Yellowstone Lake Hotel, a few miles to the northeast. The hotel is one of three hotels in the park constructed by the Northern Pacific Railroad. Originally built in 1891, it was re-designed, expanded, and remodeled in 1903, 1922-23, 1928 and 1894 to 1990. The building is a “relatively plain clapboarded Colonial Revival structure with two large Ionic porticoes facing Yellowstone Lake.1”
Yellowstone References and Resources:
Yellowstone is one of the most popular destinations in the U.S. and there are a lot of available resources, including books and DVDs
- National Park Service
- Wikipedia
- UNESCO World Heritage Site
- National Geographic
- New York Times Travel Guide
- Wikitravel
- Gorp
- PBS
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I felt I was transported away from a dark day with driving rain. Thank you!
Grannymar recently posted..Choosing
You’re welcome, of course. We’ve had rain, other than sprinkles, just once since we left home 4 weeks ago. I fear that’s fixing to change.
Hi Mike – I’m the opposite to GrannyMar .. the thought of getting to Yellowstone would make me that much hotter .. it’s over 82 deg F here .. quite extraordinary for Oct 1st .. we’re breaking records.
Were you/they walking in the water – is that a fresh lake nearby .. I guess the Yellowstone water is ‘volcanic’ and slightly ‘salty’ … or the river that flows into the system ..
Beautiful pictures again – loved the views and I could do with a cool drink – cheers .. must go to my Ma .. something’s cropped up .. Hilary
It’s going to be about that warm here today in Arizona. On the other hand, the high today in the area of the pictures in Yellowstone is only supposed to get to 62°F. — We didn’t go in the water. I did when I was a kid… It was cold! cold! cold! Yellowstone Lake is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet (2,133 m). — Yes, the lake is in the Yellowstone volcano caldera. The water entering the lake is mainly from snow melt.
Hi Mike .. thanks .. I suppose I should have been intelligent enough to realise it was fresh water – but perhaps not thinking about it .. where are the hot springs then? In the caldera itself? .. while the lake is a separate entity .. with those frozen melt waters .. yes – cold!!!
I obviously need to have a better look .. 7,000 feet above sea level .. that’s high .. living in Johannesburg 5,600 feet high actually made a difference to my lungs!
I’ve been thinking about you and Goad .. I don’t usually do crosswords .. but thought the answer was Goad .. til I checked and realised it was Rood .. the clue was ‘historical measure of land area equal to a quarter of an acre or 40 square perches’ … live and learn!
Cheers Hilary … still hot, but probably about become autumn – that will be a shock after our Indian Summer!
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