Yellowstone: Mammoth Hot Springs and more...

     After visiting Old Faithful Geyser, we were ready to relax at the campground. Madison campground was nice because you're surrounded by people, but you still feel like you have space. Here's a couple photos to give you an idea. They have a gravel section that is boxed off for your tents and then a picnic table. In front of each campsite is a paved pull-in for your car. The restrooms were also nice. Can't complain about running water and flush toilets!

      Later that same evening, Karl and I walked across the street to Madison River that runs next to our campground. I set up my tripod and took, you guessed it!, some photos... :)  Throughout the trip, I used a new filter on my camera called a circular polarizer. It's pretty easy to get the hang of, but you need to have plenty of sunlight to work with or you can't really see the difference. It's great for nature/landscape photography because it cuts down on haze and gives you more saturated colors (like a bluer sky, for instance). That's definitely something I'll be blogging about more at a later date because I saw a massive difference in my photos after using a circular polarizer!

Madison River

Madison River

       On our way back to the campground, we came across a female elk grazing right across from our campsite! She hung around for a good 30 minutes and then meandered over to the next lane of campsites. Absolutely beautiful!

 

        The next day, Tuesday 31st, we headed towards Mammoth Hot Springs about 35 miles north of our camp.  Along the way I took a few shots from the car.

Driving towards Mammoth Hot Springs

Driving towards Mammoth Hot Springs

    When you reach Mammoth Hot Springs, the lower terraces are visible from the road. We parked near Liberty Cap which is right before you enter the small "town" of Mammoth. There's a lot more to the Springs than what we saw, but here are a few photos.

Map

Liberty Cap

Devil's Thumb at Mammoth Hot Springs

     We spent most of our afternoon in Mammoth, going into the General Store and looking for souvenirs to bring back home. During our drive back to camp, we stopped along the Gardner River and did some sightseeing and also had our first major encounter with a buffalo, but that's for next time.