Editor’s note: In July 2025, Now Habersham weathercaster Tyler Penland headed west to hike and camp in Yellowstone National Park. His latest “Go west, young man” series features the stunning images he captured and the stories he brought back.
After leaving the Upper Geyser Basin behind around mid-morning, my buddy was ready for a nap, and I was ready to see the second most famous feature in Yellowstone behind Old Faithful.
I had gotten a peek at the Grand Prismatic Spring on our hike out earlier that morning, but the cool air resulted in plentiful mist that largely obscured the views of the spring itself. There is a boardwalk that runs out next to the spring, but it was incredibly crowded, and I wanted to get a bird’s eye view anyway. A quick hike back out the trail we had just left a few hours before at sunrise brought me back to a view I won’t soon forget.
The Grand Prismatic Spring comes by its name honestly. The deep blue color of the middle is due purely to the fact that this is crystal-clear, sterile water. The temperatures in the center of the spring can reach as high as 160ºF, keeping all but the most hardy of bacteria away. Near the edges, where temperatures are cooler, a variety of thermophiles (bacteria that thrive in high temperatures) exist. The colors fade around the edge from blue to green and eventually yellow and orange/red.
The spring is a whopping 360ft wide by 160ft deep, making it the 3rd largest hot spring in the world. On a warm summer afternoon like this, the mist rising from the hot water creates a near-perfect reflection of the colors below. Above, I took a photo over the center of the spring from roughly eye-level with it about a hundred yards away. I also noticed that near the edge, this phenomenon appeared to reflect a rainbow. I spent several minutes marveling at this and watching the wind whip the mist, trying to get the perfect shot to capture what I was seeing.
The area also includes two other major springs: the Turquoise Pool and the Excelsior Geyser Crater Pool. But alas, we only had so much time and more ground to cover. If you ever visit Yellowstone, be sure to allow yourself a bit more time than we did.
After a drive to the other side of the park, we took in the sights along Yellowstone Lake. This massive, deep blue lake is the largest high-elevation lake in North America. Interestingly, underground geology is causing the lake to “tilt” to the south ever so slightly. Along western shores, you can find yet another geyser basin. This one contained the bluest hot pools of the trip, and the view of them so nearby the freezing cold lake was certainly impressive.
Glancing out across the lake on this clear day, we could see the tall mountains in the distance, including those that we would be hiking in the days to come.
On our way to our campsite, we made one more stop at the Mud Volcano area of the park. Here, I saw my first up-close bison of the trip and got the pleasure of witnessing it taking a dust bath. Like many animals, bison do this to help keep mites and ticks away, and frankly, it looks like quite a bit of fun as well.
I also got to unexpectedly witness one of my favorite optical phenomena: a glory. Immediately next to the Mud Volcano parking is a deep trench that contains a handful of fumaroles and small springs. These are constantly outputting steam (that smells absolutely terrible, by the way), and with the sun high overhead, a glory formed around my head. A glory is an optical phenomenon where a “rainbow” appears around a shadow against a background of clouds. These are most commonly seen from airplanes, but in the right circumstances, can be seen from the ground as well.
It had been yet another very long day which meant it was time for another hike into our campsite for the night. This hike would give us a bit more than we bargained for….
Check out Tyler’s other articles in this series:
- Go West, young man: To where it started
- White Mountain
- Bunsen Peak
- Norris Geyser Basin
- Star light, star bright
- A ‘Faithful’ meeting
- Shattering Earth
