Exploring Park Geology with Alpine Guides in West Yellowstone
The expansive Yellowstone National Park sits atop a high plateau about 8,000 feet above sea level, surrounded on all sides by mountain ranges including the Grand Tetons, Gallatin, Madison, Beartooth, and Absaroka Mountains. The best way to explore these higher elevations is to book a tour with one of Scenic Safaris’ alpine guides in West Yellowstone. Greater Yellowstone is the last intact temperate ecosystem left in the world, and because of this, the geology of this amazing place and West Yellowstone specifically, is unique.
The Processes that Formed the Area
Yellowstone has been shaped and molded by numerous natural events over time including glaciers, the shifting of tectonic plates, and volcanoes. Yellowstone currently sits on a supervolcano of magnificent proportions. It’s the thermal forces at work beneath the surface that makes Yellowstone’s geyser activity possible.
Yellowstone’s Tumultuous Past
For at least two million years, volcanoes have been erupting in Yellowstone. It’s this activity that’s responsible for forming many of the area’s most scenic features, such as Yellowstone Lake, Huckleberry Ridge, and the Lava Creek Flow.
Thermal Features of Yellowstone
Yellowstone is home to between 300 and 500 geysers that all still erupt. This is due to the hot spot that lies beneath the surface of the park. Yellowstone also boasts fumaroles that mostly erupts gas and steam instead of super-heated water, and mudpots that look like boiling puddles of mud.
To explore the geology of the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem and West Yellowstone, book an adventure tour with one of our alpine guides in West Yellowstone. A guided tour with Scenic Safaris gives you an experienced leader who will not only take you through some of the most fantastic high elevations in the park, but it also provides you with someone who is knowledgeable about the many processes that created them. You’ll learn more about this spectacularly fascinating area in just a few hours than you might in an entire lifetime.
Call 307-734-8898 or visit www.scenic-safaris.com today to book your unforgettable tour today!