| Yellowstone National Park is a U.S. National Park | | | | overwhelming, people with respiratory difficulties |
| located in the states of Wyoming, Montana, and | | | | should consult their doctors before visiting. |
| Idaho. Yellowstone is the first and oldest national | | | | Wildfires are a relatively common occurrence in |
| park in the world and covers 3,470 square miles | | | | Yellowstone, because of the dry summer climate, |
| (8,980 km2), mostly in the northwest corner of | | | | but they should not be considered "disasters"; |
| Wyoming. The park is famous for its various | | | | instead, they are a regular natural process that |
| geysers, hot springs, and other geothermal | | | | contributes to the beauty and ecology of the |
| features and is home to grizzly bears, wolves, | | | | park. A series of wildfires in 1988 burned about |
| and free-ranging herds of bison and elk. It is the | | | | 45% of the park's forest, including some forests |
| core of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, one | | | | adjacent to the major tourist areas. The areas |
| of the largest intact temperate zone ecosystems | | | | burned in the 1988 fire present a strange, stark |
| remaining on the planet. The world's most famous | | | | beauty, and the burned areas are swiftly returning |
| geyser, the Old Faithful Geyser, is also located in | | | | to green. |
| Yellowstone National Park. | | | | Park officials advise visitors not to approach |
| Long before any recorded human history in | | | | dangerous animals and to stay on designated safe |
| Yellowstone, a massive volcanic eruption spewed | | | | trails to avoid falling into boiling liquids and inhaling |
| an immense volume of ash that covered all of | | | | toxic gas. In 2004, five bison were discovered |
| the western U.S., much of the Midwest, northern | | | | dead from an apparent inhalation of toxic |
| Mexico and some areas of the eastern Pacific | | | | geothermal gases. |
| Coast. The eruption dwarfed that of Mount St. | | | | Lodging for visitors exist at 11 locations within |
| Helens in 1980 and left a huge caldera 43 miles by | | | | park boundaries. There is a clear view of Old |
| 18 miles (70 km by 30 km) sitting over a huge | | | | Faithful Geyser at the park's Old Faithful Inn. |
| magma chamber (see Geology section and | | | | Lodges range from hotel to cabin |
| Yellowstone Caldera). Yellowstone has registered | | | | accommodations. There also are 11 campgrounds |
| three major eruption events in the last 2.2 million | | | | and one hard-sided recreational vehicle park. |
| years with the last event occurring 640,000 years | | | | The park itself is surrounded by other protected |
| ago. Its eruptions are the largest known to have | | | | lands (including Grand Teton National Park and |
| occurred on Earth within that timeframe, | | | | Custer National Forest) and beautiful drives (such |
| producing drastic climate change in the aftermath | | | | as the Beartooth Highway). Nearby communities |
| (See also:Supervolcano). | | | | include West Yellowstone, Montana; Cody, |
| The park received its name from its location at | | | | Wyoming; Red Lodge, Montana; Ashton, Idaho; |
| the headwaters of the Yellowstone River. French | | | | and Gardiner, Montana. |
| trappers gave this river the name "Roche Jaune," | | | | The United States Census Bureau reported that |
| probably a translation of the Hidatsa name "Mi tsi | | | | there were exactly 600 people living permanently |
| a-da-zi," and the later American trappers rendered | | | | on the park's land area as of the 2000 census. |
| the French name into English as "Yellow Stone." | | | | A series of lightning-derived fires started to burn |
| Although it is commonly believed that the river | | | | large portions of the park in July of the especially |
| was named for the yellow rocks seen in the | | | | dry summer of 1988. Thousands of firefighters |
| Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Native | | | | responded to the blaze in order to prevent |
| American source name more likely derived from | | | | human-built structures from succumbing to the |
| the yellowish bluffs located near present-day | | | | flames. Controversially, however, no serious |
| Billings, Montana. | | | | effort was made to completely extinguish the |
| Yellowstone is one of the most popular national | | | | fires, and they burned until the arrival of autumn |
| parks in the United States. The park is unique in | | | | rains. Ecologists argue that fire is part of the |
| that it features multiple natural wonders all in the | | | | Yellowstone ecosystem, and that not allowing the |
| same park. | | | | fires to run their course (as has been the practice |
| Geysers, hot springs, a grand canyon, forests, | | | | in the past) will result in an overgrown forest that |
| wilderness, wildlife and even a large lake can all be | | | | would be extremely vulnerable to deoxygenation, |
| found inside the park. Due to the park's diversity | | | | disease, and decay. In fact, relatively few |
| of features, the list of activities for visitors is | | | | megafauna in the park were killed by the fires; |
| nearly endless. From backpacking to | | | | and since the blaze, many saplings have sprung up |
| mountaineering, from kayaking to fishing, from | | | | on their own, old vistas are viewable once again, |
| sightseeing to watching bison, moose, and elk | | | | and many previously unknown archaeological and |
| wandering into the parking lot of the visitor | | | | geological sites of interest were found and |
| centers, most visitors enjoy a memorable | | | | cataloged by scientists. The National Park Service |
| experience in nature. | | | | now has a policy of lighting smaller, controlled |
| Most of the geothermal features (hot springs, | | | | "prescribed fires" to prevent another dangerous |
| geysers, etc) emit gaseous sulfur, and though to | | | | buildup of flammable materials. |
| most people the odor is not terribly offensive or | | | | |