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How do you want your eggs boiled? by AndreyP  Upper Geyser Basin in Old Faithful area offers 2.7 mi of paved trails, about 3 mi of boardwalks over hydrothermal surface areas and about 1.6 mi of dirt trail going to Old Faithful Observation Point. Bicycles and wheelchairs are welcome on paved trails, bicycles are not allowed on dirt trails and boardwalks. Human traffic is not allowed to leave established walkways in order not to get burned by boiling water and chemicals contained in it. Bison, elk and other wildlife spending winters in hydrothermal areas must be boiling-resistant, so you can see a lot of evidence of them inhabiting geyser fields in colder months. Upper Geyser Basin is one of three large geyser basins along the Firehole River and the majority of the world's active geysers are here. Five of six geysers that are predicted by Yellowstone park rangers are located in this area. Predicted eruption times are posted inside Visitor Center (all geysers), in lodges lobbies (Old Faithful), on information boards at geysers themselves.
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WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.
Most recent Triplog Reviews
Upper Geyser Basin
Yellowstone Geysers & Waterfalls
After spending four days backpacking in the Tetons, we spent a night in a KOA Cabin near Jackson. The next day we woke bright and early and made the long drive into Yellowstone. Our plan is to hike a variety of tourist hikes and then spend the night backpacking to Firehole Falls. We’ll do more tourist stuff the next day and will return to Jackson that evening.
The drive up went fairly well. We followed the main highway and made good time. Along the way we passed a large herd of bison just off the road. We continued on and had to pass through a portion of Teton National Park and then on to Yellowstone. I had an NPS Pass which was very convenient. Once we entered Yellowstone we continued north and headed right for Old Faithful where we picked up our backpacking permit. It was quick and easy getting our permit. The ranger asked if we needed to see the bear safety video and we said no. We spoke about our four days in the Tetons so he was comfortable with us not watching it.
After that we headed over to the general store and then walked over to Old Faithful where the crowds were massing for the eruption. We ended up having to wait 20 minutes for it blow but it was worth it. The geyser launches water into the air roughly 50 feet. We watched for about sixty seconds and I said that’s enough let’s go! So we pulled a Clark Griswold and walked away as Old Faithful continued to erupt. From there we drove over to Biscuit Basin, Grand Prismatic Spring and then Fountain Paint Pot. We made several short stops and did some very light hiking. The geysers and hot springs are amazing and this place is crowded for a reason. We found it best to park on the road and then walk to the attractions. The parking lots were jammed pack especially during the afternoon.
Once it hit mid-afternoon we drove back to the Old Faithful area for lunch. There were only a few options for us. We waited in a very long line at a grille by the general store. The food took a while but it was nice to chill after the go go go the past few days. After lunch we picked up some supplies and headed back to Biscuit Basin where we planned on backpacking to Firehole Falls.
Fast forward to Day 2… We completed our backpack and returned to the rental car parked at Biscuit Basin. We packed up our gear and headed north. Our goal is to complete a loop with short stops along the way and a long stop at The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We did a quick drive by along Firehole Lake Drive where we saw several more geysers including White Dome Geyser. From there we continued driving and saw several cool features from the road.
We eventually arrived at the Yellowstone Falls areas and spent an hour eating lunch and doing some shopping. After that we drove over to the very crowded Lower Yellowstone Falls parking area. The area was a zoo and took about ten minutes to secure a parking spot. Once we were parked we spent a couple of hours hiking along the rim and also hiked to the top of the lower falls. The area was very crowded but most people are slow and easy to pass. Once we had our fill we returned to the car and started the return to Jackson Hole. We timed it just right because a moderate rain fell on our drive back.
Our short trip to Yellowstone was over. The geysers and hot springs are amazing and I’m so glad we made the trip up here. Yes it crowded but it’s worth it. Just park off the road and spend the five extra minutes hiking to the start of the attractions. It’s well worth your time and effort.
The drive up went fairly well. We followed the main highway and made good time. Along the way we passed a large herd of bison just off the road. We continued on and had to pass through a portion of Teton National Park and then on to Yellowstone. I had an NPS Pass which was very convenient. Once we entered Yellowstone we continued north and headed right for Old Faithful where we picked up our backpacking permit. It was quick and easy getting our permit. The ranger asked if we needed to see the bear safety video and we said no. We spoke about our four days in the Tetons so he was comfortable with us not watching it.
After that we headed over to the general store and then walked over to Old Faithful where the crowds were massing for the eruption. We ended up having to wait 20 minutes for it blow but it was worth it. The geyser launches water into the air roughly 50 feet. We watched for about sixty seconds and I said that’s enough let’s go! So we pulled a Clark Griswold and walked away as Old Faithful continued to erupt. From there we drove over to Biscuit Basin, Grand Prismatic Spring and then Fountain Paint Pot. We made several short stops and did some very light hiking. The geysers and hot springs are amazing and this place is crowded for a reason. We found it best to park on the road and then walk to the attractions. The parking lots were jammed pack especially during the afternoon.
Once it hit mid-afternoon we drove back to the Old Faithful area for lunch. There were only a few options for us. We waited in a very long line at a grille by the general store. The food took a while but it was nice to chill after the go go go the past few days. After lunch we picked up some supplies and headed back to Biscuit Basin where we planned on backpacking to Firehole Falls.
Fast forward to Day 2… We completed our backpack and returned to the rental car parked at Biscuit Basin. We packed up our gear and headed north. Our goal is to complete a loop with short stops along the way and a long stop at The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We did a quick drive by along Firehole Lake Drive where we saw several more geysers including White Dome Geyser. From there we continued driving and saw several cool features from the road.
We eventually arrived at the Yellowstone Falls areas and spent an hour eating lunch and doing some shopping. After that we drove over to the very crowded Lower Yellowstone Falls parking area. The area was a zoo and took about ten minutes to secure a parking spot. Once we were parked we spent a couple of hours hiking along the rim and also hiked to the top of the lower falls. The area was very crowded but most people are slow and easy to pass. Once we had our fill we returned to the car and started the return to Jackson Hole. We timed it just right because a moderate rain fell on our drive back.
Our short trip to Yellowstone was over. The geysers and hot springs are amazing and I’m so glad we made the trip up here. Yes it crowded but it’s worth it. Just park off the road and spend the five extra minutes hiking to the start of the attractions. It’s well worth your time and effort.
2017-07-24 John9L
Upper Geyser Basin
Touristas in Yellowstone
After our adventure on the Teton Crest Trail, I realized I had opted to prepay for a full tank of gas on the rental car. It seemed stupid not to use it, so we set out on a 400-mile driving adventure through the land of Boo Boo and picinic baskets.
Not much to say. Pictures don't do it justice. As much as I dislike touristy spots, they tend to be that way because they are in fact pretty impressive to see. I'd put this place in that category. I bet it would be nice in winter though...
Not much to say. Pictures don't do it justice. As much as I dislike touristy spots, they tend to be that way because they are in fact pretty impressive to see. I'd put this place in that category. I bet it would be nice in winter though...
2017-07-24 chumley
Upper Geyser Basin
Trip Report written 2-16-2016, the trek was 9-10-15: The Upper Geyser Basin boasts the largest concentration of geysers in the world, including many of the worlds largest geysers. We checked at the VC to see what Geysers might be going off and found that we had time to make it out to Grand so off we went on the boardwalk past Old Faithful. We should be able to time it to see Old Faithful on the way back.
You get to go across the Firehole River which is so pretty. You pass by the junction up to Observation Point which I think would be fun to view some of the Geysers from but obviously not today. I filmed our walk as we passed various other little springs and geysers along the way in the area known as Geyser Hill including Anemone, Plume, Beehive and The Lion Group. You can hang a right here and double back or continue on as we did toward Grand Geyser. Next you pass Liberty Pool. Ahead of us we could see a little geyser spitting up a nice spout of water that was getting a couple tourists wet. I think it was Sawmill Geyser.
We saw the crowd gathering ahead at Grand. A person in front of us was timing the geyser and he was very close to the right time. You are on top of this eruption (well actually I stood on one of the benches) so that is pretty cool. The sheer amount of water that explodes out of Grand Geyser in blasts of up to 200 feet every 6-15 hours makes it an incredible experience and has earned Grand the title of “tallest predictable geyser in the world”. The explosion lasts about 9-12 minutes. There is a mini-geyser next to it that also spouts off. And the "grand" bonus so to speak was the rainbow the water was creating that stretched across the geysers steam and water width.
So after that "grand" show, we headed back as we wanted to catch Old Faithful erupting as well. This time we took the other side of the Geyser Hill boardwalk and passed by Ear and Beach Spring, Aurum Geyser and Doublet Pool that has a series of ledges and deep blue waters. You finish off the hill with Giantess Geyser that only erupts 2-6 times per year but when it does erupt, it has quite the steam phase that can last up to 2 days or more. We did stop to watch Old Faithful and were very grateful that when we were here the day before, the eruption was much more substantial. We felt sorry for the onlookers and hoped they didn't realize how much more fabulous Old Faithful can be.
https://youtu.be/tc ... AoDc (the video includes the pictures)
You get to go across the Firehole River which is so pretty. You pass by the junction up to Observation Point which I think would be fun to view some of the Geysers from but obviously not today. I filmed our walk as we passed various other little springs and geysers along the way in the area known as Geyser Hill including Anemone, Plume, Beehive and The Lion Group. You can hang a right here and double back or continue on as we did toward Grand Geyser. Next you pass Liberty Pool. Ahead of us we could see a little geyser spitting up a nice spout of water that was getting a couple tourists wet. I think it was Sawmill Geyser.
We saw the crowd gathering ahead at Grand. A person in front of us was timing the geyser and he was very close to the right time. You are on top of this eruption (well actually I stood on one of the benches) so that is pretty cool. The sheer amount of water that explodes out of Grand Geyser in blasts of up to 200 feet every 6-15 hours makes it an incredible experience and has earned Grand the title of “tallest predictable geyser in the world”. The explosion lasts about 9-12 minutes. There is a mini-geyser next to it that also spouts off. And the "grand" bonus so to speak was the rainbow the water was creating that stretched across the geysers steam and water width.
So after that "grand" show, we headed back as we wanted to catch Old Faithful erupting as well. This time we took the other side of the Geyser Hill boardwalk and passed by Ear and Beach Spring, Aurum Geyser and Doublet Pool that has a series of ledges and deep blue waters. You finish off the hill with Giantess Geyser that only erupts 2-6 times per year but when it does erupt, it has quite the steam phase that can last up to 2 days or more. We did stop to watch Old Faithful and were very grateful that when we were here the day before, the eruption was much more substantial. We felt sorry for the onlookers and hoped they didn't realize how much more fabulous Old Faithful can be.
https://youtu.be/tc ... AoDc (the video includes the pictures)
2015-09-10 tibber
