Sunday, July 7, 2013, Sunrise at Old Faithful, Yellowstone, WY

We got up early (4:30) to try to catch the sunrise and to beat the crowds in Yellowstone National Park. We got to Old Faithful just as it was finishing its thing. Not a problem - we walked around Geyser Hill and found there were so many other spectacular thermal vents, springs and geysers, we had to run back to Old Faithful to see its next eruption.

 The sun is starting to spill over the hills and make the colors come alive.

 Old Faithful at 7:20 AM

Old Faithful was a sight to see, and the rest of the area did not disappoint! We just about had the place to ourselves. It seemed a good time to explore the lodge and surroundings.

Dogs are not allowed very many places, so these guys were patiently waiting for their human to finish shopping. It was pretty clear shopping was not much of a thrill for them.

We took a Park Ranger-led tour around Geyser Hill to see what we had missed. Along the way, Old Faithful erupted again and we were right next to the Beehive Geyser when it erupted. I think I can say Beehive was even better than Old Faithful. We were so close that the mist condensed and rained down on us.

Old Faithful at 9 AM

Beehive blew off steam at 9:02 AM

I love this old building (built in 1903).  We had a nice lunch here.

The water is so clear it is hard to see it is there in the pictures.

Morning Glory Spring.  This is my favorite of all the springs. The colors look so surreal.

Heading back to the car, we passed a sign saying that Riverside Geyser was predicted to erupt next between 11:35 and 12:35. Since it was about 11:30 we sat down to wait. Turned out the people waiting next to us were from Alpharetta, GA (the city next to Cumming). What a small world! The geyser turned out to be a bit late, so we waited over an hour. It was worth the wait!

Riverside Geyser

Since we had such an early morning, we drove back to the coach to check on Sam and have some dinner (there may have been some napping too). We went back into the park to see a few of the places we had passed up earlier - Firehole Canyon drive, Biscuit Basin, Black Sand Basin to name a few. We also enjoyed a nice lightning show even though Sam was not happy about the thunder that went with it. We watched Old Faithful one more time before heading home to bed. 

A memorable day!