Geysertimes.org was predicting the eruption of Beehive Geyser at 5:57 pm, so I headed out on the boardwalk to see if I could capture the show. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Beehive, she is the second or third largest "regularly active" geyser in Yellowstone. Beehive can reach heights of over 200' -- higher than that of her better known nearby rival, Old Faithful. However, unlike Old Faithful, Beehive can be fickle and inconsistent, so witnessing her incredible display can take a bit of patience; she has a variance of -+ 2 hours, and can be dormant for days at a time. Beehive is one of a handful of geysers that has what is called an indicator; a physical feature that sometimes indicates an eruption is imminent. "Beehive's Indicator" is a small vent about 10' to the SE of Beehive that produces a steady 6' stream of water about 10-15 minutes before Beehive's eruption. This year Indicator has been going off for extended periods of time NOT followed by a Beehive eruption (which I had frustratingly witnessed two days earlier). This evening's predicted eruption time came and went -- then at 6:08 pm Indicator sprang to life. Eleven minutes later, Beehive, just 30' from the boardwalk, erupted with a roar, sending a 200' high column of water cascading onto a 50' section of the boardwalk -- I could literally feel the ground shaking under my feet. The bright light of the setting sun danced diamond-like through the glistening spray, producing a complete double rainbow so brilliant that I felt I could actually reach out and touch it. Although it was all over in 5 minutes, Beehive's eruption was phenomenal!!!
22 сен 2013
