Yellowstone Falls from Artist Point and More.

Let us go back to that last little map I showed you of our location before we had lunch. We were at the Grandview Point. After a 45 minute drive, we backtracked to Artist Point and got a fantastic view of the Yellowstone falls from Artist Point.
If you wish to see more un-commented pictures of Yellowstone falls and canyon, click HERE.
At 1:45 PM, a half hour after lunch, we were at the majestic Yellowstone Falls.
A chap with a two thousand dollar camera, took this with my relatively cheap Nikon.  
Shortly before 4 PM, we arrived at Mammoth  Springs. 

These aren't the summer workers -- just the local wildlife.
This town is on the northern boundary of the park and also the northern boundary of Wyoming. The houses above and to the left is where the workers live. Nice pads, wouldn't you say?
They are totally unafraid of humans. This is a Llama.
We claimed our cabin and decided to walk through the lower springs before dinner. We parked right in front of this sign. 
Looking back from the terrace to the town of Mammoth. 
Around these trees is Cleopatra Terrace. Elaine took the best picture below. 
Then, we started walking up to the overlook seen to the right. It was an easy climb, but we didn't want to go all the way since it can be reached by car coming into Mammoth. 
Now, we're walking back to town. You can see the ring of cabins in the town to the right. One of them will be ours.
After a short walk up boardwalks and stairs, we came to Minerva's Terrace (named for the Roman goddess of Artists and sculptors.
Above and below, Palette Spring. "Water flows in crisscrossing patterns down a steep ridge where colorful thermophiles create a changing palette dominated by hues of orange and brown."
Looking down on Liberty Cap -- took a lotta years of springs seeping up to form this. More pics of this later.
We will do that by car the next day. The people standing on the overlook got there the easy way.
A panoramic view looking back at the terraces we just saw. The boardwalk had well protected guardrail all over the place.   

Looking west at the road we will take tomorrow. The bridge 

 goes over the Gardner river toward the Northeast entrance.
So, what's going on here? The guide we bought says, "Yellowstone was the site of a catastrophic volcanic eruption 640,000 years ago. It partially emptied a magna chamber allowing its roof to collapse, forming a giant caldera. The magma chamber's partially-molten rock continues to provide heat for Yellowstone's hydrothermal features, including at Mammoth, more that 20 miles north of the caldera." 
But our friend, the bison, couldn't care less about the caldera.

We will be eating dinner here shortly.

Lots of little ground squirrels playing.  It's shortly after six and

Bison above, elk below. And cars occupying the same space.
And finally, we and our Mercedes are back home in our cabin.
we must have our drink and eat dinner. Tomorrow's a big day.

                                  Next: Our Yellowstone River Walk

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