Yellowstone Visit 9/20/13 --Day 2 Continued

Hayden Valley in Yellowstone

If you want to see my posts so far from our Yellowstone trip in September of 2012,  click HERE.    I am posting info on that trip in the order that it happened... So---today,  I'm posting the rest of our day (Day 2) from that trip.

We left the Canyon area and headed south --since I wanted to see HAYDEN VALLEY--which I had heard so much about.  IF you go to Yellowstone and want to see LOTS of wildlife,  this is the place to go,  especially early in the morning.  We however got there late in the afternoon...

Birds and mammals alike are drawn to the lush wetlands along the Yellowstone River,  which meanders through the length of the valley as it flows northward toward the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.   Above is a photo I took of Hayden Valley ---with LOTS of BISON in the distance.  You can also see the Yellowstone River.

Click on the photos for enlargements.

Bison at Hayden Valley, Yellowstone

Here is another photo from Hayden Valley -----using my long lens.  You can see the Bison a little better in this photo, and you can see a tiny bit of the river.

BISON crossing the road near Hayden Valley, Yellowstone

We got in a traffic jam (which is common in Yellowstone) as the BISON crossed the road.  I got this great photo of a couple of them up close and personal!!!!

Mud Caldron at Yellowstone

As we headed south (leaving Hayden Valley),  we saw some geothermal sites.    The only accessible geyser basin in this area lies between Hayden Valley and the LeHardy's Rapids.  The photo above is of MUD CALDRON.  There is no excess water---so the discharge is a thick mud.

Close-up of the thick mud at Mud Caldron, Yellowstone

Here is a close-up showing that THICK mud at Mud Caldron.  Wanna take a mud bath????  Yuk!!!

Sulphur Caldron,  Yellowstone

This is Sulphur Caldron ----and if you have ever smelled sulphur,  you will know that it smells like rotten eggs.  It is not a 'pretty' smell at all!!! ha

Mud Volcano,  Yellowstone

Here  is a Mud Volcano...  See all of that mud????  Mud Volcano has acidic waters that leach clay particles from the lava rock below.  These particles are kept suspended in the waters,  resulting in the grey mud that distinguishes this spring.

Dragon's Mouth,  Yellowstone

And---here is the most popular thermal area here,  a hot spring called Dragon's Mouth.  This one gets its name from the manner in which the water surges out from the superheated source--like a flicking, liquid dragon's tongue.

LeHardy's Rapids,   Yellowstone

After leaving the thermal area,   we checked out the LeHardy's Rapids.   After seeing the calm Yellowstone River flow through Hayden Valley,  this was an interesting place to visit.

LeHardy's Rapids,  Yellowstone

Here is a photo of George standing at the overlook at LeHardy's Rapids.  It was great standing there and hearing the sound of that amazing water!

Fall Colors at Yellowstone

AND--not only could we enjoy those rapids,  but we could also enjoy some beautiful FALL COLORS on the other side of the river.  Aren't they pretty?

At the Fishing Bridge,  Yellowstone

We drove a little farther south to see the fishing bridge.   George took this photo of me on the bridge. You can see that the water is calm here...This bridge is located very close to Yellowstone Lake.

Yellowstone River,  taken from the Fishing Bridge

Here's a photo taken of the Yellowstone River from the Fishing Bridge.

Virginia Cascades,   Yellowstone

Since it was getting late,  we turned around at the Fishing Bridge and headed back to the Canyon Village for dinner... After dinner,  we checked out the Virginia Cascades.  We had tried to see it early on the 2nd morning --but there was smoke in the area.  SO--we went back.  This beautiful 60 feet waterfall is in a heavily forested area of lodgepole pines which make for great photos.  (NOTE:  We saw 19  different waterfalls in Yellowstone plus 3 more in the Tetans area while there those five days.)

George took this photo of me at the Virginia Cascades.  Out came the sweater toward the end of the day --as it was getting cool outside.

Sunset in Yellowstone,  Sept. 20, 2012

AND--on our way back to West Yellowstone (where we were staying),  we captured a beautiful sunset....

Hope you enjoyed seeing the remainder of our Day 2 photos from Yellowstone.  There will be lots more to come!!!!!   I'm having fun re-living this wonderful trip--as I go through all of my photos.   Yellowstone is one place I would go back to in a heartbeat!!!!


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