Attention all trivia junkies! Here are some fascinating facts about Yellowstone National Park!
- Did you know that Yellowstone was the world’s first national park? However, unlike many people believe, Theodore Roosevelt did not establish the park. Congress and President Grant created it in 1872.
- Nearly everyone is familiar with Old Faithful, but did you know that Yellowstone National Park encompasses nearly half of the world’s geothermal features? In fact, the park includes nearly 500 geysers, 10,000 thermal features, mudpots and hot springs.
- Old Faithful is actually not the park’s largest geyser. Old Faithful can only shoot 200 feet high, but Steamboat Geyser can shoot up to 300 feet. However, Steamboat Geyser has unpredictable eruption times. In fact, since 1991, it has only erupted eight times, with eruptions varying from 30 days to nine years.
- The Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition in the 1880s once used Old Faithful as a laundromat. The geyser actually cleaned cotton and linen well, but the expedition soon discovered that the geyser’s eruptions shredded wool clothes.
- The Thorofare Ranger Station is reported to be the most remote occupied dwelling in the lower 48 states. Located more than 32 miles from any dwelling or road, a park ranger must travel by horse to reach this station.
- Contrary to popular belief, it is very uncommon for humans to be killed by bears in Yellowstone. Rumors blindly fly around, especially when visiting the park, however, animals try to keep their distance from humans, provided humans respect animals’ spaces. This does not mean bears do not kill humans. In fact, in 2015, a bear was responsible for killing a man, while trying to defend her cubs.
- Yellowstone experiences more than 2,000 earthquakes a year. In 1959, an earthquake between 7.3 and 7.5 created new geysers, destroyed roads and caused a landslide that killed 28 people.
- Yellowstone is a super volcano. The three most recent eruptions occurred 2.1 million years ago, 1.3 million years ago and 640,000 years ago. These eruptions all contributed to forming the Snake River Plain. Scientists believe that molten lava exists as few as two miles below the surface of the park.
- Yellow’s Grand Canyon is only one of 300 waterfalls within the boundary of the national park. The canyon reaches up to a half-mile in width and features an array of browns, reds and oranges.
Yellowstone Holiday is located outside the West Entrance to Yellowstone National Park. As the park is exceptionally crowded, it is peaceful for visitors to unwind each day after visiting different areas within the park. Yellowstone Holiday offers Hebgen Lake cabins, Yellowstone campgrounds and Yellowstone RV parks.