Lower Geyser Basin
The Lower Basin contains many minor springs, geysers, and paint pots. The more important features of the area are the Great Fountain and White Dome geysers, the colorful Fountain Paint Pots and Gentian Pool.
Midway Geyser Basin
The major attractions at Midway Basin are the Grand Prismatic Spring and Excelsior Geyser – once the most powerful in the park. It spouted in 1888, then waited more than 100 years before going off again with a 300 foot column of water and steam. It still produces 1.5 billion gallons of scalding water annually and its steam fills the whole basin at sunset when the air begins to cool.
National Park Mountain
National Park Mountain is really not a mountain, merely an extension of the Madison Plateau. At its foot, the Washburn-Langford-Doane Party, the first serious exploratory group in Yellowstone, was encamped one night in 1870 when the proposal was first made to create a national park of the area, leading to the establishment of Yellowstone as the world's first.
Clearly, Wyoming's natural attractions have been around a long, long time. But human demands on the land have dramatically changed the face of Wyoming over the past century, and not always in a positive way. That's why a growing number of the state's travel and recreation businesses are working hard to conserve natural resources and lessen their long-term impact on the environment. It's all about making sure future generations can enjoy Wyoming's wonders, too. read more
Established by “Stagecoach King” Ben Holladay on orders from the U.S. Post Office Department, the Overland Trail carried nearly 20,000 emigrants a year west between 1862 and 1868. read more
