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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (May 1, 1883)
May, 1883. THE WEST SHORE. "5 the crater, or a little above it, while there is all the time a sound of fierce boiling below; and in others the hot water stands, a wonderfully transparent pool, in vast saucer-shupcd basins, from ten to seventy-live feet across, within each of which is the well or tube from whence the eruption occurs. No language can adequately describe the gracefully curved and scalloped forms which the silicious rock deposits on the bottoms and margins of these basins, nor the beauty of the countless vivid and delicate colors with which they are dyed. The only true geysers in America are in the park and on its borders, the so-calhl geysers of California being merely a little cluster of solfalaras, fumaroles and hot springs (such as one sees on a much grander scale at many places in the park), and no mote like true geysers than a tea-kettle is like a locomotive. The other chief attractions of the basin may be briefly summarized as follows : The Castle, once the greatest geyser in the basin, and still the noisest, hs a mound forty feet in height, lively few minutes it throws little jets twenty feet Howards, but once a day sends a body of water one hundred feet into the air, and holds it there about thirty minutes, after which vast clouds of steam escape with a roar that can be heard for miles. The Bee I live is the most symmetrical in the basin, and about once a day projects a column of water 219 feet into the air, in form the most graceful that can be imagined. It plays hut eight minutes. I!y its side is a small vent from winch a jet of steam invariably shoots a few minutes More the eruption. The Giantess is very irregular in its action, its period being about fourteen days. No warning is given the visitor, but it suddenly startles him by shooting a body of boiling water 250 feet into the air, requiring the exertion of all hii activity to escape to a safe distance. It soon diminishes its height to 80 feet, and continues with brief in termissions from twelve to sixteen hours. The Lion, Lioness and Two Cubs are a group of four, the first one acting independently, and the others ceneially in unison. They are very irregular in the time of their eruptions. The Grand is most appropriately named, and its display gives the most satisfaction of any in the park. In action it is irregular, though gener ally twice a day. At first it is extremely violent, jets shooting up to great heights and at various ancles fur nearlv ten minutes. Then all is quici for an instant, when the water is suddenly pro. iected up in a mass to the height of 200 feel, ii held there a brief lime, and then all i again quiet. This is repeated generally six times, thmmh frmiii-ntlv more or less than that numner, Saw Mill geyser is so named becaue of its puffintr sound and peculiar action. The Splendid was inactive for ihree year. until 1881, when it lgan Kwni an I is now second only to Old Faithful in regularity, in intrrv.il lw.i three hours. For ncar.y ten min- iiin it column 200 feet high, a smaller i.,..-.,. n.r l.u tl.rnitW in oblique sircam that i frequently united with it by a Uautiful rainbow, 7 if m r-j1 in th falling tnraV. . The Comet, Grotto, Fan and Riverside are al inlf rwillnrr mnA ttf Irtfhnillir ACtlOO The Giant U an immense geyser, the outline r-rulirlv shaotd com is familiar 10 many, Its period if four days, and for neatly ' " it sustains a column of water seven feet in diame ter at a height of 100 feel. Leaving this wonderful basin we cross over the mountains on the trail lending past Shoshone lake, and stand by the hot springs on the bank of the western arm of YKU.OWSTONK LAKE. These springs are exceedingly large, and from them flow great quantises of boiling-hut water, One of them has liecn sounded lo the depth of 350 feet, and through its translucent waters the coral-like sides of the basin can he seen glUtening with the most delicate tints. Near by is a col lection of paint pots even more beautiful than those nrevioibly described. Hut it is to the lake that our attention is chiefly directed. It has shore line of 175 miles, covers and area of 300 square miles, and lies at the altitude of 7,780 feet above the level of the sea. Mr. Marshall says: "It contains several beauliful islands, Is surrounded by some of the grandest mountains in North America, and is of so Irrrgular a form as in give an uncommon beauty alike lo its hold, bluff shores ami its stretches ol sandy, pehhl lieaches. lis waters, pure and cold, in places 300 feet deep, shine with the rich blue of llio open sea, swarm with Iroul, and are the summer home of countless swans, white pelicans, geese, liranl, snipe, ducks, cianes, and other water fowl, while its shores, sometimes grassy, but generally cloth ed with dense forests of pine, spruce and fir, furnish coverls and feeding grounds for elk, anle- lone black and while-lailcd deer, bears and y ' . . 1 .1 1.. .1 f mountain slicep. ncaurrcu niiK n. "- -the lake, and on the mountain slopes which over look it, are many clusters of hoi springs, sol falaras, fumaroles and small gryscrs." In speaking of Ihe hoi springs, rrofessor I lay- den savsi "Near our camp mere is a ,le,,it of the silica, which has been worn by Ihe . . .. 1.1. . I. -I. ...... waves into a bluff wall, twenty-live icei the walct. It must have origlnal'y extended far . Ini., the lake. The Ml of spilng. al (hi ,,Urr is alniul three miles long, ami hall a nine 1 . . 1 1 wide. The deposit now can or, k " the deeper portions of lite lake, ami Ihe bubbles .l-. .. it,. ii.iVe in various places, indicate inai , h. ...rsence. at ihe orilice, of a hoi spring I 1 ' . . . 1 - 1 neath. Some or the luniiei-.iiawi nam. out solar Into ihe lake, that Hie mr.nlrs of our .,.. .ind uiKin Ihe siliciuus mournl, esrcnueo the rod into the deeper tsrtcr, and caught ihe .,.... .nd cooked them in the Idling spring ' nvin? them from ihe book. Sr. illu.tr. linnl The orilicrs, nr chimney, nsv no connection wilh ihe water, of W 1 ,. -..miiii. UO IhloUliH llssurc., isic . . , . A - . I il. mm tin mtm rtn .1 i..iul ihe niermi v -- . . I ! L ... fim-d within ihe w.lls of the ounce, mostly circular, and beautifully unco won caw porcelain." In Uibing in the laic on. can -iJ ether a warm or cold Ulh. a. the but water from the '"" u"'n '''7, ,.ii the lrnilrlure lo a orm i..,h,s is HO' Fahrenheit. ..nmrdutely below lh.1 o wl ""( " ...... 1. i,ui a vik- " -y While the ail was stiH, acarcrly a rippl vU . . .h. suifjf. anJ th sailed hut-, ftLTht ."-J nv::ri oresenled a pietur thai miia presenieu 1 ,,1,00. tilisl. hih Mrveloui bewty UI f umtn - A new object of inleiesl lately discoverctl on the lake shore Is a NATURAL liaimir-, . Ivni-nth which is a rsr.lr wnii-.lnll Th M'tg is thirty feet long and live whir, and eighty feel alwve the iMillnm f the clu-ni over which It hangs. The view hne Is citirmcly enticing, but lime vails us away, and we follow the trail lo MUD liKVSKHs, six miles below Ihe lake, The geyser has been inactive for four yrars, bill is surrounded by springs and miIs extremely ruiious and intvicsling. Tha greatest object of curiosity is a mud volcano on the hill side. Looking down Inlo lis cialer, glimpses can b had of Ihe boiling mud as ll belches, minuted wilh steam, liom Ihe mountain, striking againsl Ihe side of (he bottom and lolling Uck again out of sight. Another near by Is somewhat similar, but enlils only jets of slcam. A new one has recently bent discovered on Tell can creek, two miles east of YellowsloiH falls, ll is surrounded by luminous hot springs, and when in action, laige masses of mud ar thrown lo a great height. The force al limes must I leiiilic, as Ihe Hew in all directions, for a distant of seventy-live yards, are covered wilh mud. I'assinu on. towards the liver we visit jsuipnui mountain, wilh lis hoi otilfhtir springs, ami Ihm hasten lo Ihe greatest sight of all, ihe canyon and l l'I'ltK ANII I.IIWKR fAI.IS, f the Yellowstone. Ilalf-a mile sInih Ui ii'r fulls anil wilh hollilng In sugesl the scent soon io burst uHn 0111 vision, Ihf Binlully llowlng river suddenly breaks Into a series ol Hashing rapids, The water rushes along Impetuously until ll plunges over th blink of lb up' iKn Ihe r-aks 140 fret lelow. IM channel u narrowed lo loo fcrl, and III wll to di.d thai with lh great 'ore accumulated In lis rapids, ll U huiled over III dg and breaks Inlo lelachrd masses of uli.leuing H. Uierming into tin cloud of spray lhat liars from ll.-w, through which II darts lik arrows, ilMun.llng from lh sloping sides of lh rwky masMs al lb lottom. From her lh nw " 'fly on' rweivinit Inlrt Its U-.m lh wains of lh l anart reek, which plung lh 'lg of h any"ii at t ryslal cascade I J') feet abov. Spiea'llng out to considerable widlli, ll su.l.lcniy coniracis to alui fert when a quarter of mil lt Urn traversed, and hurls lllf ovi picclplr 3V feet high lni lh hollow of th canyon. Says IWessor llayden I "Th waleia sm In g.lher Ihemsrlves Inlo un compact l. " plung over lh descent -f Jjo " " '' drop of foam a whli as snow, horn ol lh larg gloUle of ''" " ,nt tent of an pl"l-.-l "ckl. Th tnilit fli Inlo circular Usin which has bn worn into Ihe hard f.k. lhat its rlun4 I on of lh graml llurs of lh Hri.H Tilt .A!tIt CA1VU.N, htch oir. out in Its greatest magtiilud Uh.w t)i L,wr falls, tsttivls tUimn lb ne f" tniy miles, ami lit wall vary flow i.uu l J. (el in iwpeivltcuUi H'ghl. Th falls ' ""'"n thus )iUd by Col. William Ludlow 1 "Th vw of lh grsn. cny n from lh point when sioul, is (-ihai' lh fiw I'' "' ' lb world. I can coniv of comblnalUm of pktijf tal spUrvlor which I4 null ""lly lh two irquisiit ul 'iiy awl imy. Chst at band, lis nvr, ivaiiowesl in Ms b4 lo a wltiib