5280 Magazine – May 2018

86 |^5280 |^ MAY 20^18

>Did You Know?

The multihued concentric circles that

emanate out from the blue center of

Grand Prismatic Spring are caused

by varying species of heat-loving

organisms. Each colored ring signifies a

different temperature and the different

thermophiles that can live there. To

survive in the harsh environments, the

organisms produce photosynthetic and

chemosynthetic pigments, which in turn

reflect specific wavelengths of visible

light, making them appear in a rainbow

of colors to the human eye.

>If You Go

Yellowstone is open year-round,

but services can be limited and

roads, trails, and attractions can be

closed or go unmaintained from

September through June because

of adverse weather. In the summer

months, heavy crowds can overwhelm

trails, parking areas, lodges, and

campgrounds. The park entrance fee

is $30 per vehicle and covers seven

calendar days. nps.gov/yell

Everywhere you look in Yellowstone

National Park, there’s evidence that

this mesmerizing landscape tiptoes an

invisible line between a steady sim-

mer and boiling over. Geysers. Mud

pots. Hot springs. he earth here

seems angry—bubbling, spewing, and

huing with barely controlled geo-

thermal energy. Don’t let anyone tell

you that fury can’t also be beautiful,

though. Exhibit A: Grand Prismatic

Spring. he third-largest hot spring

in the world, it’s more than 120 feet

deep, 370 feet in diameter, and a sear-

ing 160 degrees. But it’s the colors—a

deep blue center with rings of green,

yellow, orange, and red—that capture

everyone’s gaze. Fortunately, in 2017

the park opened the 0.6-mile Grand

Prismatic Spring Overlook Trail to

help visitors gain the bird’s-eye view

necessary for taking in the spring’s

full majesty.

LEAVE NO TRACE

Special places like the ones we’ve
highlighted here experience overuse and
abuse from the tens of thousands, if not
millions, of people who travel to see them
each year. If even a small percentage of
those folks disregard the tenets of leave no
trace—leave what you find, stay on defined
trails, dispose of trash and waste properly,
etc.—these paragons of the Western
landscape could be irrevocably damaged.
In 2014, for example, a tourist tried to get
an aerial view of Grand Prismatic Spring
using an illegal drone—which crashed into
the center of the pool. Learn how to be a
caretaker of the land by visiting lnt.org. m

G R A N D

PRISMATIC

SPRING

Yellowstone

N.P. WY

Garret Suhrie/Tandemstock