Artemisia Geyser

Over the summer there were several areas in the Upper or Lower Geyser Basin that I only visited once, or visitations were few and far between. But sometimes these areas rewarded these spontaneous visits with a special gift. One of these locations was Artemisia Geyser. Artemisia Geyser is located about a ten minute walk up the trail past Morning Glory Pool where most visitors turn around. Artemisia erupts from a massive superheated pool decorated by fantastic geyserite deposits. Eruptions are anywhere from 8-32 hours apart but are usually between 15-24.

Artemisia's massive pool and gorgeous sinter formations. Photo by Micah K.

Despite the extreme erratic intervals, there is a rugged group of Geyser Gazers that will go and plant themselves overlooking the pool for an entire day and into the night if they have to. They are Artemisia's greatest fans and I have an extreme amount of respect for the effort and dedication they put into watching this Geyser, for that reason this post is dedicated to them.

I will admit, I didn't pay much interest in Artemisia over the course of the summer as most of the significant geyser activity in the Upper Geyser Basin was much farther south. However, as the end of my employment began to draw near, I decided I needed to try to catch Artemisia. With the help from the group of Artemisia fans, I finally saw it.

Artemisia erupts! Photo By Micah K

Artemisia erupted just as I careened around the bend in a trail after being hailed over the radio. The entire massive pool lifted and flooded the surrounding sinter flat in a massive wave. Massive collapsing steam bubbles caused the ground to shake. The surface of the pool began to boil, seethe, and churn, and suddenly massive jets of water exploded into the sky up to 30-40 feet. A massive steam column climbed into the early evening sky. I celebrated with the sole Artimesia watcher who was with me, and we both enjoyed the eruption of about 30 minutes. It was one of the most incredible geyser eruptions I have ever witnessed. It was fantastic, and Artemisia instantly climbed into the list of my favorite geysers. I hope that I get the chance to see it again next summer. And the lesson I brought back from Artemisia was to never underestimate a geyser of Yellowstone ever again.