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Mile-and-a-half high Yellowstone Lake is ringed by the snow-capped Absaroka mountains.

But now our tour continues. Winding through beautiful Hayden Valley, the road continues, for the most part, close beside the Yellowstone River and then past Mud Volcano. Soon we cross over Chittenden Bridge, pass the Upper and Lower Falls and reach hospitable Canyon Hotel that is superbly situated at the head of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

Pine trees cling precariously to the rocky walls of Kepler Cascades where the Firehole River drops down a series of picturesque falls and rapids.

At the head of the Grand Canyon, the Yellowstone River roars thunderously down the great falls. Here, from viewpoints on either side of the canyon, is one of the most gloriously colorful scenes on this continent.

Magnificently Colorful ... the Grand Canyon

To many visitors, the Grand Canyon is the highpoint of Yellowstone. And well it may be, for the views from Artist or Inspiration Points are scarcely rivaled in all the world. A third of a mile wide and more than a thousand feet deep, the mighty gorge has been fantastically carved by the rushing waters of the Yellowstone River. Ranging in tone from pale lemon to tawny buff, the rock walls of the canyon are splashed with a hundred shades of crimson, blue and green—a glorious play of color that changes hourly with the passage of the sun. And far down at the bottom winds the jade green ribbon of the Yellowstone. Muted by distance, you hear the thunder of the Great Falls where the river leaps out and down, 308 feet into the gorge.

To those who have seen it, the Canyon remains one of the scenic highlights of a lifetime. Warm yet delicate in coloring, big but not so big that it staggers the imagination, the gorge is as perfect and complete as a flawless gem.

Leaving Canyon Hotel, you continue northward through Dunraven Pass, where the road climbs the shoulder of Mt. Washburn. If you wish, you may take the more spectacular route to the very summit of the 10,317 foot mountain for the finest panorama of the Park.

Soon the road rejoins the Yellowstone River and you see Tower Falls. Flowing down from the high plateau, Tower Creek plunges down a 132-foot drop to join the Yellowstone in its long course eastward. Needle-like volcanic rocks stand sentinel at the head of the falls and nearby are strange buttresses of hard basalt forming palisades as regular as if they had been cut by man.

A little farther up the road is a forest of petrified trees. These fallen giants of hard stone reproduce, in astonishing detail and in a variety of rich colors, the bark and wood fibers of which they were once composed.

Downstream from the main part of the canyon, the Yellowstone River winds in a narrow ribbon through the gray and buff walls of a rocky gorge. With the changing light, the river varies from silver to jade green.

Not far from Chittenden Bridge, the Yellowstone plunges down the Upper Falls. Seen from the lookout platform or from the camera viewpoint here, the fury and power of the cataract is indescribably impressive.

Looking northeast from Inspiration Point, the canyon of the Yellowstone spreads its splendor before you. Do an about-face here and the view is toward the lower falls. Rapids lace the dark water with creamy foam.

Pulpit Terrace at Mammoth Hot Springs has been built up from the mineral laden waters of hot springs. Ashy white in its dry, natural state, the rocky walls are tinted rainbow colors by living algae in the waters.

Fantasy in Stone ...
Mammoth Terrace

Built up and sculptured by the hot mineral waters, the smooth terraces of white stone at Mammoth Hot Springs are given a thousand delicate tints of vermillion, orange, pink and yellow by the living algae in the waters. You see Pulpit Terrace, Minerva, Cleopatra, White Elephant and the Devil’s Kitchen.