UPPER GEYSER BASIN OF FIREHOLE RIVER.
Just over the western margin of the Yellowstone Basin, yet within
the limits of our great National Park, is the grand geyser region of
Firehole River. Here, in a valley a dozen miles long and two or three
wide, is an exhibition of boiling and spouting springs on a scale so
stupendous that if all the corresponding phenomena of all the rest of
the world could be brought into an equal area the display would seem as
nothing in comparison.
Firehole River, the main fork of the Madison, has its source in Madison
Lake, a beautiful sheet of water set like a gem among the mountains,
dense forests of pines coming down to the very shores. A pointed ridge
extends into the lake on the west side about half a mile, giving it the
form of a heart. Its area is about three miles from north to south,
and two from east to west. Its shores are paved with masses of trachyte
and obsidian. The high mountains about the lake and along the river are
gashed with deep gorges, with steep and jagged sides. Pines grow upon
the mountain-sides where the declivity is so great that they cannot be
scaled. In the obstructed gorges and on the mountain-tops, from 9,000
to 10,000 feet above the sea, little lakes occur every mile or so,
nestled among the pines. Clear-watered mountain-torrents tumble down
the almost vertical ridges to swell the Firehole, making cascades that
in any other region would enjoy world-wide fame. Just before reaching
the geyser-basin, some ten miles below the lake, the river roars
through a deep gorge in the trachyte rock, and as it emerges, dashes
over two cliffs, one twenty, the other fifty feet in height. "These
pretty falls," writes Lieutenant Doane, "if located on an Eastern
stream, would be celebrated in history and song; here, amid objects
so grand as to strain conception and stagger belief, they were passed
without a halt."
Shortly after, the cañon widens and the dominion of the Fire King
begins. Scattered along both banks of the river are boiling springs
from two to twelve feet across, all in active eruption. The craters
of these springs are from three to forty feet high. Like the springs
on Gardiner's River, these gradually seal themselves up by depositing
mineral matter around and over their orifices. Numbers of such
self-extinguished craters, now cones of solid rock, are scattered
along the river-side. Two miles further down the stream is the upper
geyser-basin, an open, rolling valley, two miles wide and three long,
the mountains on either side rising 1,500 feet above the valley, with
steep, heavily-timbered ledges of dark rock.
Hurrying down the Firehole, thinking the wonders of the Yellowstone
country had been left behind, and anxious only to reach the settlements
of the Madison Valley, the expedition of 1871 was startled and
astonished to see at no great distance an immense volume of clear,
sparkling water projected into the air to the height of one hundred and
twenty-five feet. "Geysers! geysers!" exclaimed one of the company,
and, spurring their jaded horses, they were soon gathered around an
unexpected phenomenon--a perfect geyser. The aperture through which
the column of water was projected was an irregular oval, three feet
by seven in diameter. The margin of sinter was curiously piled up,
the exterior crust filled with little hollows full of water, in which
were globules of sediment, gathered around bits of wood and other
nuclei This geyser stands on a mound, thirty feet above the level of
the surrounding plain, its crater rising five or six feet higher. It
spouted at regular intervals nine times during the explorers' stay, the
columns of boiling water being thrown from ninety to one hundred and
twenty-five feet at each discharge, which lasted from fifteen to twenty
minutes. They gave it the name of "Old Faithful."
"Near the crater, and as far as the irruptive waters reach," writes
Lieutenant Doane, "the character of the deposit is very peculiar.
Close around the opening are built up walls, eight feet in height, of
spherical nodules, from six inches to three feet in diameter. These
stony spheres, in turn, are covered with minute globules of stalagmite,
incrusted with a thin glazing of silica. The rock, at a distance,
appears the color of ashes of roses, but near at hand shows a metallic
gray, with pink and yellow margins of the utmost delicacy. Being
constantly wet, the colors are brilliant beyond description. Sloping
gently from this rim of the crater in every direction the rocks are
full of cavities in successive terraces, forming little pools, with
margins of silica the color of silver, the cavities being of irregular
shape, constantly full of hot water, and precipitating delicate,
coral-like beads of a bright saffron. These cavities are also fringed
with rock around the edges, in meshes as delicate as the finest lace.
Diminutive yellow columns rise from their depths, capped with small
tablets of rock, and resembling flowers growing in the water. Some
of them are filled with oval pebbles of a brilliant white color, and
others with a yellow frost-work which builds up gradually in solid
stalagmites. Receding still farther from the crater, the cavities
become gradually larger, and the water cooler, causing changes in the
brilliant colorings, and also in the formations of the deposits. These
become calcareous spar, of a white or slate color, and occasionally
variegated. The water of the geyser is colorless, tasteless, and
without odor. The deposits are apparently as delicate as the down on
the butterfly's wing, both in texture and coloring, yet are firm and
solid beneath the tread. Those who have seen the stage representations
of "Aladdin's Cave," and the "Home of the Dragon Fly," as produced in
a first-class theatre, can form an idea of the wonderful coloring, but
not of the intricate frost-work, of this fairy-like, yet solid mound of
rock, growing up amid clouds of steam and showers of boiling water. One
instinctively touches the hot ledges with his hands, and sounds with a
stick the depths of the cavities in the slope, in utter doubt in the
evidence of his own eyes. The beauty of the scene takes away one's
breath. It is overpowering, transcending the visions of the Moslem's
Paradise."
As the next party of explorers were leaving the basin, ascending the
river, this grand old geyser, which stands sentinel at the head of the
valley, gave them a magnificent parting display. "With little or no
preliminary warning," writes Dr. Hayden, "it shot up a column of water
about six feet in diameter to the height of 100 to 150 feet, and by a
succession of impulses seemed to hold it up steadily for the space of
fifteen minutes, the great mass of water falling directly back into the
basin, and flowing over the edges and down the sides in large streams.
When the action ceases, the water recedes beyond sight, and nothing
is heard but the occasional escape of steam until another exhibition
occurs. This is one of the most accommodating geysers in the basin, and
during our stay played once an hour quite regularly."
Old Faithful stands alone, though surrounded by a number of old
geyser hills, whether built up in past ages by one spring shifting
its position from time to time, or by a group of springs, now almost
exhausted, it is impossible to tell.
Just across the river, and close to the margin, stands a silicious
cone, very symmetrical, slightly corrugated on its exterior surface,
three feet in height and five in diameter at its base. Its orifice is
oval, with scalloped edges, and two feet by three in diameter. Of this
unpretending cone Mr. Langford writes:
"Not one of our company supposed that it was a geyser; and among so
many wonders it had almost escaped notice. While we were at breakfast
upon the morning of our departure a column of water, entirely filling
the crater, shot from it, which, by accurate triangular measurement, we
found to be 219 feet in height. The stream did not deflect more than
four or five degrees from a vertical line, and the eruption lasted
eighteen minutes. We named it 'The Bee-hive.'"
A hundred yards further from the river, near the centre of the large
group of spouting and boiling geysers, of which the Bee-hive is one, is
a large oval aperture with scalloped edges, the diameters of which were
eighteen and twenty-five feet, the sides corrugated and covered with a
greyish-white silicious deposit, which was distinctly visible at the
depth of one hundred feet below the surface.
"No water could be discovered," writes Mr. Langford, on his first
approach to the spring, "but we could distinctly hear it gurgling
and boiling at a great distance below. Suddenly it began to rise,
boiling and spluttering, and sending out huge masses of steam, causing
a general stampede of our company, driving us some distance from our
point of observation. When within about forty feet of the surface it
became stationary, and we returned to look down upon it. It was foaming
and surging at a terrible rate, occasionally emitting small jets of
hot water nearly to the mouth of the orifice. All at once it seemed
seized with a fearful spasm, and rose with incredible rapidity, hardly
affording us time to flee to a safe distance, when it burst from the
orifice with terrific momentum, rising in a column the full size of
this immense aperture to the height of sixty feet; and through and
out of the apex of this vast aqueous mass, five or six lesser jets or
round columns of water, varying in size from six to fifteen inches in
diameter, were projected to the marvellous height of two hundred and
fifty feet. These lesser jets, so much higher than the main column, and
shooting through it, doubtless proceed from auxiliary pipes leading
into the principal orifice near the bottom, where the explosive force
is greater.... This grand eruption continued for twenty minutes, and
was the most magnificent sight we ever witnessed. We were standing on
the side of the geyser nearest the sun, the gleams of which filled
the sparkling column of water and spray with myriads of rainbows,
whose arches were constantly changing,--dipping and fluttering hither
and thither and disappearing only to be succeeded by others, again
and again, amid the aqueous column, while the minute globules into
which the spent jets were diffused when falling sparkled like a
shower of diamonds, and around every shadow which the denser clouds
of vapor, interrupting the sun's rays, cast upon the column, could be
seen a luminous circle radiant with all the colors of the prism, and
resembling the halo of glory represented in paintings as encircling the
head of Divinity. All that we had previously witnessed seemed tame in
comparison with the perfect grandeur and beauty of this display. Two
of these wonderful eruptions occurred during the twenty-two hours we
remained in the valley. This geyser we named 'The Giantess.'"
The central spring of this group stands on the summit of a great mound
built up in thin layers, by the continual but moderate overflow of the
spring. The crater is twenty feet in diameter, slightly bubbling or
boiling near the centre, and with a thin, elegant ring projecting a few
inches over the water. Looking down into the clear water of this spring
one seems to be gazing into fathomless depths, while the bright blue of
the water is unequalled even by the sea. There are many such central
springs, usually crowning the summits of mounds, and with projecting
rims carved with an intricate delicacy truly marvellous, and adorned
with colors that defy description. "The great beauty of the prismatic
colors," writes Dr. Hayden, "depends much on the sunlight; about the
middle of the day, when the bright rays descend nearly vertically, and
a slight breeze just makes a ripple on the surface, the colors exceed
comparison; when the surface is calm there is one vast chaos of colors,
dancing, as it were, like the colors of a kaleidoscope. As seen through
this marvellous play of colors, the decorations on the sides of the
basin are lighted up with a wild, weird beauty, which wafts one at once
into the land of enchantment; all the brilliant feats of fairies and
genii in the Arabian Nights' Entertainments are forgotten in the actual
presence of such marvellous beauty; life becomes a privilege and a
blessing after one has seen and thoroughly felt its cunning skill."
Across the river, and a short distance below this group, is the largest
and most imposing formation in the valley--the crater of Castle Geyser.
This geyser receives its name from its resemblance to the ruins of
an old castle as one enters the valley from the east. The deposited
silica has crystallized in immense globular masses, like cauliflowers
or spongiform corals, apparently formed about a nucleus at right
angles to the centre. The entire mound is about forty feet high, and
the chimney twenty feet. The lower portion rises in steps formed of
thin laminæ of silica, mostly very thin, but sometimes compact, an
inch or two thick. On the southeast side, where the water is thrown
out continually, these steps are ornamented with the usual bead and
shell work, with the large cauliflower-like masses: but the other
portions are fast going to decay, and the débris are abundant. This
has undoubtedly been one of the most active and powerful geysers in
the basin; it still keeps up a great roaring inside, and every few
moments, as observed by Dr. Hayden, it throws out a column of water
to the height of ten or fifteen feet. Occasionally it seems to have
more imposing eruptions, since on one occasion Lieutenant Doane saw it
throw a column of water to the height of sixty feet, with the escape
of heavy volumes of steam. The next year Colonel Barlow saw a similar
display. According to the latter observer, the base of the crater is
three hundred and twenty-five feet in circumference, and the turret
one hundred and twenty-five. At the base of the turret lies a large
petrified pine log, covered with a brilliant incrustation several
inches thick.
Across the river, and a little below the Castle, are some fifty springs
and geysers, the chief of which has been called Grand Geyser, its
power seeming greater than that of any other in the valley. Lieutenant
Doane describes this magnificent geyser as follows:
"Opposite camp, on the other side of the river, is a high ledge of
stalagmite, sloping from the base of the mountain down to the river.
Numerous small knolls are scattered over its surface; the craters of
boiling springs from 15 to 25 feet in diameter; some of these throw
water to the height of three and four feet. On the summit of this bank
of rock is the grand geyser of the world, a well in the strata, 20 by
25 feet in diametric measurements, (the perceptible elevation of the
rim being but a few inches,) and when quiet having a visible depth of
100 feet. The edge of the basin is bounded by a heavy fringe of rock,
and stalagmite in solid layers is deposited by the overflowing waters.
When an eruption is about to occur the basin gradually fills with
boiling water to within a few feet of the surface, then suddenly, with
heavy concussions, immense clouds of steam rise to the height of 500
feet, and the whole great body of water, 20 by 25 feet, ascends in one
gigantic column to the height of 90 feet; from the apex of this column
five great jets shoot up, radiating slightly from each other, to the
unparalleled altitude of 250 feet from the ground. The earth trembles
under the descending deluge from this vast fountain; a thousand hissing
sounds are heard in the air; rainbows encircle the summits of the jets
with a halo of celestial glory. The falling water plows up and bears
away the shelly strata, and a seething flood pours down the slope
and into the river. It is the grandest, the most majestic, and most
terrible fountain in the world. After playing thus for twenty minutes
it gradually subsides, the water lowers into the crater out of sight,
the steam ceases to escape, and all is quiet. This grand geyser played
three times in the afternoon, but appears to be irregular in its
periods, as we did not see it in eruption again while in the valley.
Its waters are of a deep ultramarine color, clear and beautiful. The
waving to and fro of the gigantic fountain, in a bright sunlight, when
its jets are at their highest, affords a spectacle of wonder of which
any description can give but a feeble idea. Our whole party were wild
with enthusiasm; many declared it was 300 feet in height; but I have
kept, in the figures as set down above, within the limits of absolute
certainty."
[Illustration: THE GRAND GEYSER OF THE FIREHOLE BASIN.]
Dr. Hayden describes it with equal enthusiasm.
"We camped the evening of August 5th, in the middle of the Upper Geyser
Basin, in the midst of some of the grandest geysers in the world.
Colonel Barlow and Captain Heap, of the United States Engineers, were
camped on the opposite side of the Firehole. Soon after reaching camp a
tremendous rumbling was heard, shaking the ground in every direction,
and soon a column of steam burst forth from a crater near the edge of
the east side of the river. Following the steam by a succession of
impulses, a column of water, apparently six feet in diameter, rose
to the height of 200 feet, while the steam ascended a thousand feet
or more. So steady and uniform did the force act, that the column of
water appeared to be held there for some minutes, returning into the
basin in millions of prismatic drops. This was continued for about
fifteen minutes, and the rumbling and confusion attending it could be
compared only to that of a charge in battle. It would be difficult to
describe the intense excitement which attended such a display. It is
probable that if we could have remained in the valley several days, and
become accustomed to all the preliminary warnings, the excitement would
have ceased, and we could have admired calmly the marvellous ease and
beauty with which this column of hot water was held up to that great
height for the space of twenty minutes. After the display is over the
water settles down in the basin several inches and the temperature
slowly falls to 150°. We called this the Grand Geyser, for its power
seemed greater than any other of which we obtained any knowledge in
the valley. The are two orifices in one basin; one of them seems to
have no raised rim, and is a very modest-looking spring in a state of
quiescence, and no one would for a moment suspect the power that was
temporarily slumbering below. The orifice is oblong, two and a half by
four feet, while for the space of ten feet in every direction around
it are rounded masses of silica, from a few inches to three feet in
diameter, looking like spongiform corals. Nothing could exceed the
crystal clearness of the water. This is the Grand Geyser. Within twenty
feet of this orifice is a second one, of irregular quadrangular form,
fifteen by twenty-five feet; the east side of the main outer rim of
reservoir extended twenty feet beyond the large orifice. The bottom of
this great reservoir is covered with thick spongiform masses, and in
addition the rim is most elegantly adorned with countless pearl-like
beads, of all sizes. There are several beautiful triangular reservoirs,
one and one half by three feet, set around the outer sides of the rim,
with numerous smaller ones, full of clear water, with hundreds of small
depressions most beautifully scalloped. As we recede from the rim,
the waters as they pass slowly away produce, by evaporation, broad
shallow basins, with thin, elegantly colored partitions, portions
of which have the form of toad-stools. When the water settles into
these depressions, or flows away toward the river in numerous small
channels, the wonderful variety of coloring which is so attractive
to the eye is produced. The larger orifice seems to be in a state
of violent agitation as often as once in twenty minutes, raising up
the entire mass of water ten or fifteen feet. It is never altogether
quiet. Although these two orifices are within the same rim, I could not
ascertain that there is the slightest connection with each other. When
the large orifice is much agitated it does not disturb the equanimity
of the Grand Geyser. They both operate perfectly independently of each
other. Indeed I do not know that there is a connection between any of
the springs in the whole basin, though there may be in some rare cases.
The Grand Geyser operated twice while we were in the basin, with an
interval of about thirty-two hours; of course the displays could not
be exactly periodic, but it would be an interesting study to remain
several days to watch carefully the movements of such a power."
Just east of Grand Geyser is the Saw-mill, a moderate sized geyser,
with three smaller ones by the side of it, all playing at the same
time. From the larger a column of water is constantly shot up fifteen
or twenty feet, with much the sound of the escape of steam from a
pipe. The orifice is not more than six inches in diameter; but with
the three smaller ones playing at the same time a great commotion is
excited. Near this little group are several large boiling springs,
which throw up the water in the centre from two to four feet. These are
funnel-shaped, with orifices from six inches to two feet in diameter,
in basins with nearly circular rims, from fifteen to forty feet in
diameter. About one fourth of a mile northeast of the Castle, upon a
mound thirty feet about above the river, built up of thin laminæ of
silica, and rounded off, rise four chimneys of different sizes, which
are geysers, though perhaps not spouting extensively at present. One
is twelve inches high, nearly circular, and three feet in diameter;
the second is oblong, four by six feet, with rather coarsely scolloped
margins, with an aperture about fifteen inches in diameter; the third
chimney is about three feet high and six feet in diameter at the
base, with an orifice nearly quadrangular twelve inches across. The
spongiform masses inside are covered all over with beautiful pearly
beads of silica. The fourth chimney rises five feet above the mound,
is ten feet in diameter at the base, with an orifice two feet across,
lined inside with the spongiform masses. This has been at one time a
first-class geyser, but is now fast going to decay, a beautiful ruin.
The elegant bead work on the margin, and all the spongiform masses,
now are falling into pieces, forming great quantities of _débris_
around the base of the mound. There is also one boiling spring of
great beauty. The orifice, which is nearly circular and beautifully
scolloped around the margin, extends straight down, and the water
rises within an inch or two of the margin. The water is in a state
of constant agitation, boiling up two feet at times. The margin has
a coating of bright cream-yellow, while all around the surface there
is the most delicate and intricate embroidering, surpassing the most
elaborate lace-work. Surrounding the crater is an outer reservoir four
feet wide, with a white and reddish-yellow rim, while in the bottom of
the reservoir is the variegated sediment which aids in giving such a
wonderfully gay appearance to the spring. A stream of water flows from
the spring to the river, and the channel is lined for fifty yards with
the variegated sediment. Near this is another mound which rises, with
laminated steps, about six feet. Dr. Hayden called it the Bathtub. It
has much the shape and size of an ordinary bathing-tub, five feet by
ten, beautifully scolloped around the inner margin with the spongiform
or cauliflower masses of silica, the outer surface being adorned
with the greatest profusion of pearly beads. The water is constantly
boiling up two feet high, though but a small quantity flows from the
spring. The entire valley is full of similar springs, many of these
no doubt geysers whose periods of activity have never been observed.
"We could not distinguish," writes Lieut. Doane, "the geysers from the
other hot springs except by seeing them play, and doubtless there are
many besides in the valley of great size, which we saw when quiet, and
classed as boiling springs. They all vary in times, force, deposits,
and color of water. The number of springs of all kinds in the valley is
not less than fifteen hundred; and, with the exception of the Bluestone
Springs, scarcely any two are exactly alike. Taken as an aggregate, the
Firehole Basin surpasses all the other great wonders of the continent.
It produces an effect on the mind of the beholder utterly staggering
and overpowering. During the night we were several times awakened
by the rush of steam and the hissing of the waters, as the restless
geysers spouted forth in the darkness. A constant rumbling, as of
machinery in labor, filled the air, which was damp and warm throughout
the night."
Lieutenant Doane's suspicion that many quiet-looking springs were
slumbering geysers, was speedily and grandly justified. The very
next morning his company were awakened by a fearful hissing sound,
accompanied by the rush of falling water. On looking out, they saw on
the other side of the stream a small crater, three feet in height,
with an opening 26 inches in diameter, which had scarcely been noticed
on the previous day. Now it was playing a perpendicular jet to the
height of 219 feet, amid great clouds of steam, and causing the ground
to tremble as the heavy body of water fell with tremendous splashes
upon the shelly strata below. Huge masses of rock were torn from their
places and borne away into the river channel. It played thus, steadily,
for ten minutes, giving time to obtain an accurate measurement by
triangulation. This crater gave no notice of being a geyser, and
its appearance and size, compared with others, were altogether
insignificant. "We were more than ever convinced," adds Lieutenant
Doane, "that continued observation would develop the knowledge of
geysers in greater numbers, and perhaps of greater projectile force
than any we had seen."
Crossing the river once more to the south side--that of Old Faithful
and the Castle--we find another large group of springs, the chief of
which is the Giant. This is remarkable rather for its immense flow of
water than for any peculiarity of structure. It has a rugged crater,
shaped like the base of a broken horn, twelve feet high. Its cavity or
nozzle is seven feet in diameter.
[Illustration: THE GIANT GEYSER.]
During its quiescent state the boiling water can be seen in its
chambers at a depth of forty feet, the action of the steam and water
together producing a loud, rumbling sound. Near, and acting in concert
with it, are half a dozen smaller craters from two to eight feet in
height, constantly full of water, and boiling violently from two to
six feet into the air. "This great geyser," says Lieutenant Doane,
"played several times while we were in the valley, on one occasion
throwing constantly for over three hours a stream of water seven feet
in diameter, from 90 to 200 feet perpendicularly. While playing it
doubled the size of the Firehole River."
At the base of the mountain further south is a remarkable geyser,
discovered by Colonel Barlow, and called by him the Comet.
The crater of this geyser is very beautiful, though, being but slightly
elevated above the general slope of the plateau, it might easily
be overlooked, should it not happen to play during the visit of an
examining party. There are three openings. One, a very small aperture,
emits puffs of steam, similar to the exhaust-pipe of a steam engine.
The large one in the centre, six feet across, boils violently during an
eruption, but does not throw water to a great height. The third opening
is the geyser proper. It is twelve by eighteen inches in diameter,
somewhat narrowed as it descends, and is of great depth--smooth
and straight. These cavities are all lined with delicate deposit,
beautifully enamelled, in appearance as delicate as frost-work, but
hard and strong, requiring the assistance of a hammer to detach
fragments for specimens. Soon after Colonel Barlow entered the basin he
witnessed a grand eruption of this geyser. He says:
"A roar was heard near the hill-side a hundred yards distant, and upon
rushing out in that direction we saw a huge mass of steam issuing from
a crater at the base of the hill, accompanied by a column of water
rising to a height far exceeding that of any geyser yet seen. This
grand fountain continued to play for several minutes, when, having
subsided, I approached to obtain a closer view of the aperture whence
had issued such a powerful stream. A sudden gush of steam drove me
away, following which the water was again impelled upward and upward,
far above the steam, until it seemed to have lost the controlling force
of gravity. The roar was like the sound of a tornado, but there was no
apparent effort--a steady stream, very graceful and perfectly vertical,
except as a slight breeze may have waved it to and fro. Strong and
smooth, it continued to ascend, like the stream from a powerful steam
fire-engine. We were all lost in astonishment at the sudden and
marvellous spectacle. I have no hesitancy in stating that this geyser
played to the height of over two hundred feet. It commenced at five
o'clock in the afternoon and continued twenty minutes.
"The enthusiasm of the party as they watched this wondrous display knew
no bounds. Those who were usually loud and boisterous in the exhibition
of their feelings, became subdued and simply gazed in silent awe;
while the more sober members seemed to lose their natural gravity and
manifested their delight in shouts of rapture. For myself, I remember
trying to obtain a view of the fountain from all points of the compass
at once, and was brought to a realizing sense of the difficulties
attending the execution of this desire, by discovering that I was
waiting in the torrent of hot water which was now flooding the nearly
level surface of the surrounding rock.
"After the grand column of water subsided, vast clouds of steam, were
for some time ejected from the throat of the geyser, and also from a
small rent close beside the main orifice.
"During the following day we watched this crater with increasing
vigilance in the hope of witnessing another of its stupendous
exhibitions. The photographer kept his camera levelled upon the spot
all day, and careful arrangements for triangulating the height of the
column were also made. But though numerous indications of another
eruption were observed at intervals by the rising of the water with
violent ebullitions, no explosion occurred till about ten o'clock
at night, when the grand performance was repeated. The spectacle by
moonlight was truly sublime, but less satisfactory than in the day,
since it was more difficult to distinguish between the column of water
and the masses of vapor escaping with it. The interval between its
eruptions was approximately determined as about twenty-nine hours;
we therefore reasoned that it would play again at three o'clock the
following night, and at eight on the succeeding morning. But we were
doomed to disappointment; the eruption persisted in taking-place
before daylight on the three succeeding nights, thus preventing the
observations we so much desired to make."
Two hundred yards below the Giant is the Grotto so named from the
curious irregularity of its inclosing walls. It has an exceedingly
intricate formation, with fantastic arches, pillars, and turreted
sides, and discharges several times a day. Several of the first
explorers crawled through the sinuous apertures when all was quiet.
It seemed as harmless as curious then, but their opinion was changed
slightly when they saw it an hour after throwing a column of water six
feet in diameter to the height of sixty feet. Near it are several vents
in which the water boils constantly to the height of six feet, large
streams running down the banks into the river.
Around the point of a hill a few hundred yards south of the Grotto, and
partially concealed by a grove of pines, is a white cone twenty-five
feet high and a hundred feet in diameter at the base. It has evidently
been a geyser of considerable importance, but it now merely sends forth
puffs of steam from a small orifice at the top. Near it is a quiet
hot-spring with a most elegantly scalloped rim. Back of this Pyramid is
the Punch Bowl, and still further south, the Black Sand Geyser, neither
of which has been specially described.
Returning to the river and crossing we find at the water's edge, nearly
opposite the Grotto, the Riverside Geyser, and a short distance below,
on the same side, is the Fan. The latter geyser has a double orifice,
which discharges five radiating jets to the height of sixty feet, the
falling drops and spray giving the appearance of a feather fan. The
effect is very beautiful. Its eruptions are frequent, lasting usually
from ten to thirty minutes. A vent connected with it, about forty
feet distant, expels dense masses of vapor fifty or sixty feet high,
accompanied by loud, sharp reports, during the time the geyser is in
action. Lieutenant Doane describes the curious action of these vents as
follows:
"First the steam would rush from the upper crater, roaring violently,
then this would suddenly cease, to be followed by a fan-like jet of
water rising from the lower crater to the height of over forty feet,
playing for perhaps two minutes; then this would suddenly stop flowing,
and the steam would rush forth again for a time. Occasionally the small
crater threw a transverse stream, alternating with the others; and thus
they played on for hours, after which all would subside to a gentle
bubbling."
[Illustration: FAN GEYSER.]
Along both banks of the river are small craters built up in every
conceivable shape. Several streams pour out cascades from round holes
in the rocky bank of the river, and all around are little geysers
playing at intervals from six to forty feet.
A plateau opposite the Fan contains fifteen hot springs of various
characteristics; some are of a deep blue color and have fantastic
caverns distinctly visible below the surface of the water. The openings
at the surface are often beautifully edged with delicately wrought
rock fringes. One variety deposits a red or brown leathery substance,
partially adhering to the sides and bottom of the cavern and waving
to and fro like water plants. In size these springs vary from five to
forty feet in diameter.
Two hundred yards below the Fan are two lively geysers called the
Sentinels. The one on the right bank of the stream is in constant
agitation, its waters revolving horizontally with great violence,
occasionally spouting upward to the height of twenty feet, with a
lateral projection of fifty feet. Much steam is thrown off at each
eruption. The crater of this geyser is three feet by ten. The companion
Sentinel on the other side of the stream is smaller and less active.
At this point the river-valley is narrow and the stream rapid, with a
considerable fall. Forty or fifty comparatively unimportant geysers and
boiling springs are scattered along the narrow valley to the junction
of Iron Spring Creek, the lower limit of the Upper Geyser Basin.
Iron Spring Creek, a stream about half the size of Firehole River,
takes its name from a group of springs on its banks, about a mile south
of the Giant. Among the most noticeable of these is a group of eight
beautiful springs enclosed in a single rim, one hundred and forty feet
in length. The interior of the basin is lined with a rose-colored
deposit. These springs are situated on the crest of an eminence
incrusted with rocky deposits which encroach on the adjacent forest,
whose dead and whitened trunks bear evidence of the deadly effect of
the hot water flowing among them. On a considerable mound, at the
junction of Iron Creek with the main stream, is a group of geysers
that do not differ materially from those already described. The central
member of the group is known as Soda Geyser.
[Illustration: THE BEE-HIVE.]