Yellowstone National Park provides families with the opportunity to spend time together, explore nature and learn about geology. Instead of children just learning about geology and volcanoes from textbooks, parents can take them to the world’s foremost volcanic hotspot.
Beneath Yellowstone lies a super volcano. Yellowstone is the creation of three different eruptions, which occurred 2.1 million, 1.3 million and 640,000 years ago. The hot steam underneath this super volcano creates upwelling plumes within the mantle. The heat then melts the rocks and magma pools very close to the earth’s surface. This creates what we know as Yellowstone’s volcanic hotspots.
Scientists have recently estimated that the next eruption will not occur for another 1 to 2 million years. In fact, the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory website has a website for constant monitoring.
Parents and children can learn abundant information by visiting Yellowstone National Park, including understanding seismic activity, exploring more than 10,000 hydrothermal features, 300 geysers, viewing the largest concentration of active geysers in the world, walking among active travertine terraces in Mammoth Hot Springs and seeing the sites of petrified trees formed by volcanic eruptions. The park’s highlights also include hot springs, steam vents, mudpots and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River.
Seeing geologic wonders in person versus reading about them in student handbooks make huge differences in children’s lives. Parents and children are able to connect on both a personal and educational levels, and the fun of seeing wildlife in their natural habitats makes Yellowstone an interactive experience.
As an added bonus, Yellowstone Holiday is located outside the West Entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Staying outside the park provides families with more bonding time and an escape from the everyday traffic within the boundaries of the park.
Yellowstone Holiday accommodates Yellowstone RV camping and offers Hebgen Lake lodging. As a full-service campground, they also have Hebgen lake marina, which features boat rentals. Hebgen Lake is renowned worldwide for fantastic trout fishing. Fishing is a superb family activity, as it teaches patience and sportsmanship.
Yellowstone Holiday is also centrally located to nature hikes, Quake Lake and other nearby historic areas. Yellowstone National Park is a fun family-friendly summer adventure, whether it is driving across country or flying into a nearby airport. This vacation is sure to not disappoint!
References:
http://earthsky.org/earth/what-do-you-know-about-the-yellowstone-supervolcano