Geysers by Moonlight 2014, Beehive shoots for the moon.

After the debacle that Beehive and it's Indicator decided to put us through last season, I was pleased to arrive in Yellowstone to find Beehive is now cooperating quite nicely, erupting anywhere between  13.5-19 hours. On June 10 Beehive erupted at 1018 in the morning, I was present for the eruption, and I elected that I would go out during the bright nearly full moon and see a moonlit Beehive while taking some pictures with my new Nikon DSLR Camera. I'm pretty sure the camera was the only thing that saved me from going insane.

Beehive Geyser's cone by Moonlight. Photo by Micah K. 

After hauling all of my gear up to Geyser Hill around Midnight, I was greeted by a nice tall eruption of Lion Geyser, which was finishing up a series it started earlier in the evening. Pleased, I walked past Beehive and set up my camera, and began to shoot some pictures. Eventually, I got everything the way I wanted, put the lens on, and walked away. I was fully expecting Beehive to erupt on a 13-14 hour interval and expected that I would be in my cozy dorm bunk at 3 am, I forgot the number one rule of Geyser Gazing. NEVER say always with a Geyser. 1 am and 2 am waltzed right on by with nothing but a distant Grand and a handful of Big Anemone's to show for it. I began to get chills while muttering made up curses at the 4-foot hunk of geyserite in front of me. Beehive looked dead, I was getting cold, and fog was. gathering on the hill. It was the gazing equivalent to watching paint dry, and I was not pleased with Bug.

Throughout the evening, blowing steam had given me momentary cardiac arrests by giving the illusion that water was in Indicator, but it always turned out to be false. However, at 0300 exactly, I suddenly heard a gurgle and burble. I trained my light on Indicator just as a rocking pool of water appeared, seconds later, Indicator erupted. I whooped and ran to my camera, wary of the ominously shifting wind, which kept on pushing Beehive's steam towards me. I knew that if I moved the wrong way, I could get very cold and wet indeed.

Beehive's Indicator erupting with the lights of the Old Faithful Lodge in the background. Photo by Micah K. 

Then....my camera died, I managed to get a couple photos of Beehive's indicator in eruption. And then kaput. But all the better, because what happened next will be engraved into my memory for the rest of my life. Beehive splashed, splashed, surged, and erupted.

Immediately my jaw dropped, Beehive's roar filled my ears as it rocketed into the sky, knifelike jets leapfrogged from the column and reached for the highest stars. I could help from screaming and jumping up and down as Beehive climbed to almost unbelievable heights. The boardwalk shuddered in tandem with the pulsing cacophony emanating from the cone. A curtain of water fell northeastward and doused a large portion of Geyser Hill before cascading back towards the Firehole.

My smile stayed glued onto my face as Beehive gasped out its last steam huffs into the night sky. It's good to be back.  

Morning Geyser-Lower Geyser Basin.

"MORNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!!" I pounded on the railing of the observation platform with my fists in excitement as a jet of golden superheated water knifed through the steam. Morning Geyser had finally erupted for me at 0647 on July 16, 2013.

After the post I wrote on the 25th of May, which can be read here, Morning Geyser continued its active phase through the month of June and into July, where it seemed to slow down slightly. However, Morning continued to erupt through August. And then in September it took part of an event known as a "Trifecta" in which Morning, Morning's Thief Geyser immediately next to it, and Fountain Geyser all erupt simultaneously. This event happened four times over the summer. However, as awesome as this event is to behold (Morning and Morning's Thief can erupt for an hour,  Fountain can erupt for 3 hours) it was begun to be seen as a bad omen, because each successive time there was a Trifecta, the next interval to Morning got longer. Many people blame the last Trifecta which occured on September 3 (which I was lucky enough to witness) for Morning's lapse back into dormancy.

Geyser "Trifecta" on September 3, 2013, Morning is illuminated by the huge spotlight, Morning's Thief can be seen just right of Morning, and Fountain is just off frame to the left. Photo courtesy of Pat S.

For some unfathomable reason for the first third of my summer in Yellowstone, I didn't make that much effort to try to see Morning, a mistake that cost me many potential eruptions I could've seen. I tried to convince myself that I was waiting for the right opportunity (I wanted fountain to have a 40+ minute duration eruption). Well, that unmistakable opportunity happened on the evening of July 15th, when Fountain had a 40 minute duration eruption. Unfortunately, that meant that in order to be there in time for the morning window (7-9 hours after Fountain) I had to be at the Lower Geyser Basin Fountain Paint Pot area by no later than 6.

Through a somewhat crazy train of events, I managed to arrive at the Fountain Paint Pots around 6 ish. 47 minutes later, I was rewarded as Morning erupted just as the golden sunlight streamed over the hills to the east. It was burst after burst, some were thin jets that shot straight up. Other times the entire pool domed up in a Blue Bubble that exploded with a *KA-WHUMP*. It was the geyser experience of a lifetime, the sheer power mixed with beauty that I witnessed is unparalleled than anything I have ever seen, and what I would give to experience it again.

Morning blue bubble during the July 16, 2013 eruption, Photo by Micah K

Alas, it could be up to over a decade before Morning decides to play again if this turns out to truly be a return to dormancy. But I consider myself lucky that I was at least able to see it twice in this active phase, and one thing's for sure, if it ever starts up again, I'll be going up to the Lower Basin every chance that there is for Morning.

Geysers by Moonlight, night Gazing in Yellowstone.

I suppressed a shiver, gripped my pencil tighter, and tugged my hood further down over my face. Cold mountain wind knifed through me as I stared at the steaming pool before me, Depression was due, very due. Suddenly I caught movement, clicking on my headlamp I observed water pouring over the large sinter rim of the jagged crater.  Finally.

The first jet caught me by surprise, making me jump in my folding chair as it blasted through the pool. After that, my smile widened as Depression Geyser threw water up to ten feet, it was a strong eruption. Of course it had to be at night. 

It's been 2 weeks in Yellowstone, and of course, when I'm not at work, I'm out in the basin. However, many of my shifts have me getting off at 7-9:30 pm, the gazing takes place early morning and in the evening. But it has made me realize that night time gazing is different from gazing during the day time, your senses increase in sensitivity, the smallest splash makes your head swivel looking for a source. You play everything by ear. 

I almost enjoy night gazing more than I do day gazing because of how much more in depth it is. No distractions of crowds, or car horns, or radio transmissions. It boils (pun intended) completely down to your own observational skills and experience, there's no group of older gazers to tell you what to look for, your entering into a whole new playing field with the Geyser. It's just a chess game of time and observing patterns to figure out what it's going to do. And that's what Geyser Gazing is all about.

Watching the Sawmill Group under the stars Photo Courtsey of Will Boekel.