Geyser information provided by the Geyser Guru David Monteith
The Top Three - Geyser Areas
In my opinion the three "must-sees", in their order of importance, are The Upper Geyser Basin (home to Old Faithful Geyser), the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and the Fountain Paint Pot Trail. These areas are described below:
1. OLD FAITHFUL and the UPPER GEYSER BASIN:
Of course, everyone goes to see Old Faithful but few walk even the short distance needed to cross the river and see Geyser Hill and even less spend time in the rest of the geyser basin. Please plan to spend some time in this area - there is a lot more to see than just Old Faithful!
This one square mile basin is home to hundreds of geysers and some very pretty hot springs. Take your time and explore. Sit, relax and watch some of the geysers. Only by taking your time can you experience Yellowstone's unique thermal wonders.
An interpretive pamphlet about the Upper Geyser Basin is available at the visitor center and at the start of the boardwalk behind Old Faithful. Pamphlets cost $0.25 (1995) but may be borrowed and returned at the trail head at no charge. Besides describing some of the basins features the pamphlet also includes a map of the basin which shows the boardwalks and the locations of some of the major geysers and hot springs.
About four miles of boardwalks lead through the basin. These boardwalks provide safe access to the many thermal features and protect delicate features from the trampling feet of the thousands of tourists that visit the area each year. For your safety and the protection of the thermal features, please stay on the boardwalks.
The must-see geyser is Grand. Eruption predictions for this and a few other geysers are posted in the Old Faithful Visitor Center. Grand is the largest predictable geyser in the world. It is larger and lasts longer than Old Faithful. More importantly, it is very spectacular and quite pretty. Unfortunately, Grand can not be predicted as accurately as Old Faithful so some waiting is required. It is well worth the wait. The other predicted geysers are also worth seeing but not at the risk of missing Grand.
If you are interested in seeing some of the other geysers, first, check the geyser predictions at the Old Faithful Visitor Center. Then talk to the rangers staffing the visitor center. "The Geysers Of Yellowstone" by T. Scott Bryan (available in the visitor centers) is a great source of geyser information. This book gives the characteristics of hundreds of geysers and information on what to look for before an eruption. The book is especially helpful if you want to see some of the geysers that are not predicted at the visitor center. Predictions are posted for only seven of the hundreds of geysers in the park.
The predicted geysers, with some of their current (1995) characteristics, are listed below. All are worth seeing. Some of the predicted geysers only erupt a few times per day and have prediction ranges of an hour or more. Thus, to see a particular geyser, you should show up at the beginning of its predicted range and wait. The two geysers that USUALLY require the least waiting are Old Faithful and Daisy.
Grand - Usually erupts every 8 - 12 hours. The eruption lasts about 12 minutes. It will often stop after about 9 minutes and then restart after a minute or so. This second "burst" and any subsequent bursts are among the tallest if not the tallest of the eruption. Be sure to wait and see if there is a second burst.
Daisy - Usually erupts every 90 - 110 minutes and is very predictable. The eruption lasts about 3 - 4 minutes. I like the view from the side away from Old Faithful.
Riverside - Usually erupts every 5.5 - 7 hours. The water phase of the eruption lasts about 20 minutes and is followed by a 30 minute steam phase.
Castle - Usually erupts every 9 - 11 hours. The twenty minute water phase of a major eruption is followed by a 40 minute steam phase. The first 15 minutes of the steam phase is relatively forceful and fairly loud so try to be close for this part. Castle sometimes has minor eruptions which last only a few minutes. When it has a minor eruption, Castle becomes unpredictable until it has its next major eruption.
Great Fountain (located 8 miles north of Old Faithful on Firehole Lake Drive) - Usually erupts about every 10 hours in a series of distinct bursts that occur over a period of an hour. The first 10 minutes are the most spectacular.
Old Faithful - erupts every 35 - 120 minutes for 1.5 - 5 minutes. The rangers say that 90% of their predictions are within +/- 10 minutes. The time to the next eruption is predicted using the duration of the current eruption. The longer the eruption lasts, the longer the interval until the next eruption. For instance, a 2 minute eruption results in an interval of about 50 minutes and a 4.5 minute eruption results in an interval of about 85 minutes. It is not possible to predict more than one eruption in advance. Old Faithful is deceiving. The benches around the geyser are over 300 feet from the geyser but with nothing to judge the distance by, I rarely realize just how big the geyser is until I get further away. I like the view from Geyser Hill. As with any geyser, watch the wind direction or you may only see steam.
You may see many geysers that are not predicted. "Geyser Gazers" (visitors to the park that study the geysers) keep track of many of the geysers. If they tell you that a geyser is about to erupt, ask them some questions and try to determine if they are knowledgeable. You may get to see something that most visitors miss.
My favorite pools in the basin are, Doublet Pool and Beauty and Chromatic pools. Doublet pool is located on Geyser Hill. If there are no people walking on the boardwalk, a condition usually limited to early morning or late evening, sit on the bench in front of the pool and you may feel thumping as steam bubbles collapse deep in the pool. Beauty and Chromatic pools, located between Grand and Giant geysers, are connected underground. Over a period of weeks one pool gets hotter and begins to overflow as the other gets cooler and stops overflowing. Then the process reverses. Usually the pool that is overflowing is the most colorful.
Consider taking a ranger led walk. These walks are usually informative and fun for children and adults. Rangers often route their "geyser walks" so that you will get to see some geysers erupt. You can find out about scheduled walks at the Old Faithful Visitor Center.
If you catch the geyser bug you will want to spend at least a day in the Upper Geyser Basin, if not you will still need a half day.
You can call the Old Faithful Visitor Center at: 307-344-7381 to get current prediction times. Please only do this if your time is very limited. Besides the visitor center, prediction times are also posted in the lobbies of the Inn and Lodge.
2. GRAND CANYON of the YELLOWSTONE:
Most of the scenery in Yellowstone is on an intimate scale but this is not true of the canyon. The canyon has a grand scenic scale that is spectacular. The colorful canyon walls and waterfalls are beautiful and worth exploring.
You can get an interpretive pamphlet about the canyon at the Canyon Visitor Center located in Canyon Village. The pamphlet also describes some of the trails in the area.
To tour the canyon first take the North Rim Drive stopping at each lookout and then cross the river and go out to Artist Point and take the short walk to the lookout. This will leave the most spectacular overlook until the last. The must-see lookout is at Artist Point.
I recommend the walk down to the lip of the Lower Falls. The Red Rock Trail is almost as nice. I do not recommend Uncle Tom's Trail. There are also trails along both rims of the canyon. The rim trails can get you away from the crowds.
A nice water fall, Crystal Falls, can be seen along the north rim trail between the Lower Falls and Upper Falls. It is best during high runoff.
A nice picnic area is located along the river upstream from the canyon just after you cross the Yellowstone river on your way to Artist Point.
You can see the canyon area in half a day unless you stay with the car, then you can rush through in an hour.
3. FOUNTAIN PAINT POT TRAIL:
This short 1/2 mile loop trail is located in the Lower Geyser Basin. On the short walk you get to see good examples of most types of thermal features in the park including hot pools, mud pots, fumaroles and geysers. At least one geyser is usually erupting here at all times.
An interpretive pamphlet and map is available at the trail head.
It takes about 1/2 hour to get around this area. The parking lot is small and it can be hard to find a parking space but it is well worth the hassle.
The following 13 areas are in the order that you come across them as you drive the Grand Loop Road in a clockwise direction starting at Old Faithful.
UPPER GEYSER BASIN: See #1 above.
OLD FAITHFUL INN:
Although man made, the lobby of this 1904 National Historic Landmark is well worth seeing. The Inn is the tallest building located near Old Faithful geyser.
BLACK SAND BASIN:
This basin near the Old Faithful overpass has some pretty hot pools.
MIDWAY GEYSER BASIN:
This has two of the largest thermal features in the park. Grand Prismatic pool is the largest in the park and is very colorful. On a warm day you can get a good view of the basin by scrambling up the hill located across the road from the parking lot. The view is worth the effort.
LOWER GEYSER BASIN:
This is the most extensive basin in the park covering about 11 square miles. It is home to the Fountain Paint Pots (see above), Fountain Flat Drive (sometimes a good place to see bison and other wildlife), Firehole Lake Drive and many geysers and hot springs.
Located along Firehole Lake Drive are many geysers including Great Fountain (eruption predictions posted at the Old Faithful Visitor Center and in the summer at the geyser), a number of hot pools and the 3 Senses Nature Trail.
FOUNTAIN PAINT POT TRAIL: See #3 above.
NORRIS GEYSER BASIN:
Norris is the hottest thermal area in the park. This coupled with acidic water (most other areas in the park contain slightly alkaline water) makes the appearance of Norris different than any other area in the park. This difference is most spectacular from the Porcelain Basin overlook trail. To get to this trail go through the museum, start down the hill and take the loop trail to the right.
The Back Basin trail is also a must. Cistern spring and Echinus geyser are well worth seeing. Many that see Echinus geyser, times are predicted in the Norris Museum, enjoy its 1 to 45 minute eruptions more than Old Faithful. Echinus usually erupts every 20-80 minutes.
An interpretive pamphlet about this area is available at the trail head near the museum. It will take at least 2 hours to see Norris.
MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS:
The activity here changes quickly. If you have not been here before you should walk around the multi-colored limestone terraces. If you have been here before you may feel disappointed by the changes in activity since you were last here. An interpretive pamphlet with descriptions and a map of the area is available at the trail heads and at the Mammoth visitor center.
TOWER FALLS:
If you are driving past, be certain to stop. The falls overlook is just a short distance from the store parking lot. I also like the view from the bottom but that requires a short hike.
GRAND CANYON of the YELLOWSTONE: See #2 above.
MUD VOLCANO AREA:
The temperatures here are lower than at the geyser basins but the activity is interesting and worth exploring. An interpretive pamphlet about this area is available at the trail head.
YELLOWSTONE LAKE:
What can I say? It's a big lake. If there is a storm it can be fun. There are many nice picnic areas along the lake.
WEST THUMB GEYSER BASIN:
This basin is located on Yellowstone Lake and with this back drop it can be pretty. There are a few pretty pools here. An interpretive pamphlet about this area is available at the trail head.
| Upper Geyser Basin (Old Faithful Area) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Geyser | Average Interval | Duration | Height (ft) |
| Artemisua | 15 hr 4 min | 5 - 25 sec | 30 |
| Aurum | 2 hr 44 min | 70 sec | 20 |
| Beehive | 14 hr 7 min | 5 min | 150+ |
| Castle | 11 hr 50 min | 15 - 20 min | 75 |
| Daisy | 2 hr 6 min | 3.5 min | 80 |
| Depression | 5 hr 47 min | 6 min | 10 |
| Fan & Mortar | Erupted 09 Jan 00 | 45 min | 100+ |
| Giant | Erupted 22 Apr 00 | 1 hr | 200+ |
| Giantess | Erupted 22 Apr 03 | 12 - 48 hr | 150+ |
| Grand | 11 hr 33 min | 10 min | 160+ |
| Grotto | 5 hr 27 min | 1 - 24 hr | 30 |
| Lion | 6 hr 24 min | 1 - 7 min | 60 |
| Little Cub | 94 min | 10 min | 5 |
| Oblong | 2 hr 48 min | 6 min | 40 |
| Old Faithful | 94 min | 1.5 - 5 min | 106 - 180 |
| Plate | 1 hr 59 min | 4 min | 5 |
| Plume | 47 min | 1 min | 20 |
| Riverside | 5 hr 56 min | 20 min | 75 |
| Tilt | 43 min | 2 min | 5 |
| Midway Geyser Basin (5 miles north of Old Faithful) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Geyser | Average Interval | Duration | Height (ft) |
| Flood | 45 min | 7 min | 10 |
| Till | 9 hr | 30 min | 20 |
| Lower Geyser Basin (8 miles north of Old Faithful) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Geyser | Average Interval | Duration | Height (ft) |
| Fountain | 5 hr 10 min | 30 min | 70 |
| Great Fountain | 9 hr 48 min | 45 min | 70 - 200+ |
| Pink Cone | 18 hr | 5 min | 25 |
| White Dome | 10 min to 2 hr | 1.5 min | 25 |
| Norris Geyser Basin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Geyser | Average Interval | Duration | Height (ft) |
| Euchinus | Irregular | 10+ min | 80 |
| Steamboat | Erupted: February 27, 2026 | 10+ min | 300+ |
Old Faithful Geyser Prediction Video provided by the NPS
Many of the major sights are listed above, but not all, so explore for yourself and have fun!
Eruption Prediction Times are posted in most Visitor Center and the NPS has an App.
For more Geyser Information, visit The Geyser Observation & Study Association (GOSA). Or visit The Geyser Times.
For a full Yellowstone National Park Map Click Here.
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|---|---|---|---|
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| Entrance Cities and Gateway Towns | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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