Where the White Things Are: Paint Pots

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Paint Pots

Our second stop in Yellowstone was the Paint Pots geothermal area. We had planned on seeing the famous rainbow Grand Prismatic Spring, but decided to see Paint Pots first since they popped up first along the park loop road. We were glad we stopped when we did because later when we drove past the Grand Prismatic Spring area, there was a long line of cars waiting to turn into the full-to-bursting parking lot and hoards of people swarming the place. We skipped it. Paint Pots gave us our fill of rainbow-edged hot springs, bubbling hot mud pits, and we even saw a few geysers spout along the path.

The place was otherworldly. It seemed like a cross between Mars and the moon, with the contrast between the bright orange "bacteria mats" and the desolate white cratered expanse of bubbly mud and geysers. There were several holes that were gurgling and sucking like an old drain. The boiling mud bubbles rose and popped endlessly. The steam never stopped rising from the hot springs. The colors and complete foreign novelty of the place kept us entranced.

Jeff carried Amber again. The danger this time wasn't a 1200 foot drop off a canyon edge; it was boggy boiling hot springs. Ten points to Yellowstone for the variety of ways to destroy an Amber! We didn't have a mask to fit her little elfin face, and when we tied a bandanna to her nose, she was endlessly touching her face and the cloth over it to the point that it seemed...pointless. Jeff carried her to keep her safe from burns and to keep her head above the flocks and crowds of tourists (some masked, others not).

This time, Rose lugged our big old Pentax camera and I held firm with my you-bring-it-you-carry-it rule. She slung the heavy camera over her thin shoulders and it dangled downward while she walked. The lens zoomed in farther with every step she took until it was fully extended. When Rose pulled the camera up to take pictures, I always had to remind her that it was zoomed in. She still took most of her pictures at a high zoom level. But it was fun for her and she looked cute with that massive camera.

Jay was interested in reading all of the informational plaques positioned around the boardwalk. We learned that the orange color was from bacteria. The plaques did not answer two of my questions: 1. Can an egg be boiled in a bubbling hot spring? and 2. Is the blue water in the hottest part of the steamy hot springs sterile? Obviously bacteria grows around the edges, but is that central water clean? Can any water that smells so sulfuric be sterile? Clearly I need to do some research. We had no cell service in any part of Yellowstone, so there was no asking Google for more info in the moment, and the lame guidebook that I bought before our trip had zero helpful information about geology.

This sign was awesome. No dogs, no bikes, no smoking, dangerous fragile thermal area, no drones, no food, no throwing coins, rocks, or other objects into the pool. The crowning white sign at the top was my favorite: "UNSTABLE GROUND. BOILING WATER. Stay on designated trails. Slippery when wet or icy. Basically, stay on the path (6 feet apart from others) and do nothing but walk forward. I love stupid-proofing signs! There's space on that brown sign for one more addition. What will be next?

I, for one, was not tempted to stray from the boardwalk onto the boiling ground.

Paparazzi Rose, masked and zooming.

A mat of bacteria sounds so disgusting! It was pretty, though.

BUBBLING WHITE MUD. Are we still on Planet Earth? How is that tiny tree living in that hot dirt?

A geyser! It erupted right in front of us! Or is it called spouting? Spraying?

I loved this cautionary rhyming couplet stenciled in 6 feet increments along the walkway to the toilets. "Enjoy the park 6 feet apart." With a bear in the middle for what? Emphasis? Stay one bear length apart from people? HAH! Clearly I get overly amused by signage.

Here are a few pictures that Rose took with the big zoomy camera: