YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 6391 YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 



part is drained by the Yellowstone and it.s 

 tributaries into the same stream. All these 

 rivers are clear and cold, and in many places 

 are beautified by falls and rapids. 



The sources of the different river systems are 

 near to each other along the Continental Di- 

 vide. Two Ocean Plateau, in the southeastern 

 part of the park, is so named because within its 

 boundaries streams belonging to each river 

 system have their source, and Two Ocean 

 Pond, during high water, feeds streams con- 

 nected with each system. 



There are over thirty waterfalls in the park, 

 and some of them are of surpassing beauty and 

 grandeur. Among those especially worthy of 

 mention are Firehole Falls, over the Firehole 

 River, sixty feet; Gibbon Falls, eighty feet; 

 Kepler Cascade, eighty feet ; Osprcy Falls, 150 

 feet, and Tower Falls, 132 feet. The falls of 

 the Yellowstone are described below. 



Yellowstone Lake is the most important 

 body of water within the park. It has an area 

 of 139 square miles and a depth of 300 feet, 

 and its surface is 7,741 feet above the level 

 of the sea. Could Mount Washington, the 

 highest peak of the White Mountains, be set 

 in Yellowstone Lake with its base at sea level, 

 its summit would be nearly 2,000 feet below 

 the .surface. With the exception of Lake Titi- 

 caca, in Peru, this is the largest body of water 

 in the world at so great an altitude. The water 

 is clear and cold, and the lake abounds in fish, 

 the shore of the western branch, known 

 as the Thumb, are a number of hot springs 

 whose cones rise above the surface of the sur- 

 rounding water, and here an angler may catch 

 a fish and without moving from his tracks cook 

 it m one of these springs. For the convenience 

 of tourists a fleet of launches and rowboats is 

 kept at the Lake Hot< 1, \\i-.\- the outlet. 



The other lakes of importance are Shoshone, 

 Lewis and Heart, south of the Continental 

 Divide; Beach and Dryad lakes, west ol \>\- 

 low.-tone Lake; and a number of smaller lakes 



to thf nirtliea*t ol" tin- body of \\ 



Fall* ami Canyon of tfu Yrllou 

 For the first sixteen miles of its course the 

 Yellowstone River flows quietly through the 

 broad and beaut if i! 



current begins to increase in swiftness. Rapids 

 are soon encounter i to the 



plunpo dt" into th.> ivon 



beyond. The Upper Falls of the Yellowstone 

 have a height of 112 fc< ter is broken 



into foam and .-pi ty l>y projecting rocks, and a 

 beautiful cascade is formed. A short distance 



farther the channel narrows to a width of 

 eighty feet, and the river makes another plunge 

 of 310 feet. The Great Falls of the Yellow- 

 stone is one of the great cataracts of the world. 

 In its leap the water is dashed into spray, 

 which completely hides the lower part of the 

 fall, and at certain hours of the day fills the 

 gorge with rainbow tints. The narrow gorge 

 gives full effect to the great height of the fall, 

 the roar of the water is deafening, and the 

 effect upon the beholder as he approaches the 

 brink is almost overwhelming. 



But surpassing all else in this land of won- 

 ders is the Grand Canyon, a gorge twenty 

 miles long and in places over 1,400 feet deep. 

 The first five miles include the section visited 

 by tourists. This scene has been portrayed by 

 the camera, by the brush of the artist and by 

 the pen of many a ready writer, but only a per- 

 sonal observation can give one anything like an 

 adequate conception of such a stupendous work 

 of Nature. 



Other Objects of Interest. Golden Gate 

 Canyon and the canyons of the Gardiner and 

 the Gibbon rivers are of more than passing in- 

 terest. The Mammoth Paint Pots consist of a 

 pool of boiling clay of various colors, whose 

 movements resemble those of a huge kettle of 

 boiling mush. Mud Geyser, in Hayden Valley, 

 is a gruesome object, in marked contrast to the 

 beautiful scenery in which it is set. Obsidian 

 Cliff is a mountain of volcanic glass 250 to 300 

 feet high. Roaring Mountain is a hill near 

 Norris Geyser Basin, from whose sides jets of 

 steam issue with such force that they can be 

 heard a mile distant. There are also numerous 

 vents in other places from which steam escapes 

 with terrific force. In the northeastern part of 

 the park are the remains of a petrified forest. 



Administration. Yellowstone Park was set 

 apart by Congress in 1872 as a game preserve 

 and a pleasure ground. For this admirable 

 piece of legislation great credit is due Dr. F. V. 

 li -.den. who, tin- year previous, made a thor- 

 b survey ol" tin- region for the government 

 Tht park is managed by the Department of the 

 humor and is under tin- direct supervision of 

 a park commissioner, who resides at Mammoth 

 Hot Springs (Fort Yellowstone), which is ad- 

 ministration headquarters. Civilian scouts pa- 

 tr ! the park all the year to protect the scenery 

 and the game. Every one entering the park is 

 r and to leave his firearms, 

 or have them sealed. During the tourist sea- 

 son the scouts make daily visits to all geysers 

 and hot springs, and so perfect is their system 



