Day Three: Ursa Major (Cool)

This was the designated Thermal Stuff Day. We checked out most of the hot, sulfur-y things at the park. It's so odd when you're driving through Yellowstone, because you're in the forest, and it's pretty and you feel like there should be a Disney Princess nearby singing to the bird perched on her finger, when suddenly: STEAM. EVERYWHERE. It's so odd to see, it really is.
We checked out some interesting mud pool things. Some of them look like dragon dens, so, yeah.
When we drove through Hayden Valley, we saw a ton of bison just wandering around, looking all sorts of happy in their pasture. One of them, though, walked onto the road, right into traffic! We ended up playing Follow the Leader with him while he took his sweet time crossing. It was hilarious.
We took a break from geothermal goodness to look at the Tower Falls. It's a short hike to the bottom, by the river, and absolutely stunning. I mean, it's absurd how pretty it is.
After that, we checked out another waterfall, and I got stung by an angry mini wasp thing. In the car. It wasn't a pleasant experience. I'm just so grateful toward my genes that I'm not allergic to bees or anything.
There was a short break in Mammoth for ice cream cones (huckleberry for Casey and my aunt, mint chocolate chip for me) and then we went to check out those springs. Let me tell you, the mammoth springs (wish I could remember the exact name) are some of the coolest/weirdest things I have ever seen. Especially the terraces on the side of the cliff. It's downright bizarre. It almost looks like an Antarctic landscape, instead of a bunch of calcium/other stuff deposits in Wyoming.
There was a short detour when we saw a small group of elk grazing by a river. I'm going to say it again: gorgeous. Seriously, they were the prettiest animals ever. Huge bucks with huge racks (heh heh). It was funny to see so many people sitting on the bank opposite them, taking pictures. You never see the other side of those Yellowstone shots, the huge clump of people standing together and taking pictures. It's kind of hilarious.
We caught Old Faithful on our way to dinner. Well, it caught us. We weren't there for five minutes before it went off. So cheesy, but so cool.
We took showers by the lodge there and headed back.
Also of note: we saw a bear. It was probably a juvenile grizzly, and we saw it from the car. But nevertheless, we saw a bear.
Yeah, buddy.
More tomorrow!

Hot mud, anyone?

Hayden Valley, home of the bison!

This guy.

Bison, bison everywhere!

The caldera is ridiculously pretty. Ridiculously.

King of the rock!

Tower Falls I.

Tower Falls II.

We saw a bear.

One side of the elk...

...and the other.

Artist Paint Pots.