Obsidian Expeditions

Obsidian Expeditions We provide family-friendly guided tours of Glacier, Grand Teton & Yellowstone National Parks
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You don’t see this everyday.
06/07/2024

You don’t see this everyday.

Record-setting brood seen trailing mom in Yellowstone’s Little America region on Wednesday.

Happy Birthday Yellowstone National Park
03/02/2024

Happy Birthday Yellowstone National Park

Overwatch!
02/29/2024

Overwatch!

The transfer of bison to Native American Tribes by the National Park Service is culturally and historically important as...
02/15/2024

The transfer of bison to Native American Tribes by the National Park Service is culturally and historically important as it acknowledges indigenous rights, promotes ecological restoration, supports cultural revitalization, and symbolizes resilience and survival for indigenous communities.

(News Release) 116 Yellowstone bison transferred to Fort Peck Tribes

During the week of Feb. 5, the National Park Service (NPS) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) moved 116 Yellowstone National Park bison to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Poplar, Montana. The Bison Conservation Transfer Program continues to make history, having relocated the largest number of live Yellowstone bison to American Indian Tribes in the world.

The bison transferred to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation included 108 males, four females and four calves.

Since 2019, a total of 414 Yellowstone bison have been transferred to the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes at Fort Peck. Nearly all of those bison and their offspring have then been further distributed to 26 Tribes across 12 states in partnership with the InterTribal Buffalo Council.

This transfer is the result of many partners working together: the NPS, Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, APHIS, the State of Montana, InterTribal Buffalo Council, Yellowstone Forever, Defenders of Wildlife and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition.

Visit Bison Management for more information.

Join us for an all-day winter safari of Yellowstone National Park during the National Brotherhood of Skiers Summit in Bi...
02/11/2024

Join us for an all-day winter safari of Yellowstone National Park during the National Brotherhood of Skiers Summit in Big Sky, MT. Reserve your seat TODAY for an unforgettable winter adventure.

FareHarbor is the all-in-one booking solution and business management platform that helps you operate your tours, activities, attractions and rentals.

Join us for a once-in-a-lifetime getaway.
02/10/2024

Join us for a once-in-a-lifetime getaway.

Witnessing the joy of a South American family experiencing their first winter wonderland in Grand Teton National Park wa...
02/03/2024

Witnessing the joy of a South American family experiencing their first winter wonderland in Grand Teton National Park was pure magic - snow angels, frozen lakes, and pure delight. Bringing the world together, one snowflake at a time.

01/26/2024
Public Service Announcement:Orf Virus on the National Elk RefugeBighorn sheep wintering on the   are likely battling an ...
01/21/2024

Public Service Announcement:

Orf Virus on the National Elk Refuge

Bighorn sheep wintering on the are likely battling an infection of Orf virus, also known as contagious ecthyma.

According to the CDC, “animals infected with Orf virus typically develop scabby sores around their lips, muzzle, and in their mouth”. The viral infection has not been verified by the lab but bighorn sheep are displaying the visual clinical signs of the virus.

There are a lot of apparent infected animals indicating the virus is likely widespread in the herd. Healthy adult sheep are expected to recover from the visual clinical signs within 3-6 weeks. However, infected individuals are more prone to secondary infections which increases their risk of morbidity and mortality.

Important to note, Orf virus is a zoonotic disease and can be spread to people. Infections in humans typically occur when broken skin comes into contact with the virus from infected animals or contaminated equipment.

The bighorn sheep on the National Elk Refuge have become habituated to people and regularly approach vehicles to lick salt and minerals from them. The transfer of saliva to vehicles not only spreads the disease throughout the herd, with multiple sheep often licking the same location, it also puts people at greater risk for contracting the virus.

Do your part to stop the spread of orf virus by keeping your vehicle moving when animals are present on the road, honking your horn or slapping the side of your vehicle to encourage animals to move off of the roadway, and immediately relocating your vehicle to a different parking area if approached by sheep.

Raena Parsons
Visitor Services Manager
National Elk Refuge

Orf virus is a member of the parapoxvirus genus in the Poxvirus family. This virus primarily causes an infection in sheep and goats, although it can be transmitted to people.

When the spirit animal of the bighorn sheep appears unexpectedly before you, it is a message that you have all the power...
12/29/2023

When the spirit animal of the bighorn sheep appears unexpectedly before you, it is a message that you have all the power needed to overcome the battles you are currently facing. Thus, this mammal asks you not to flee from a problem but to face it head-on. This animal also tells you to acknowledge the greatness that lies within you.

May the Coming New Year Bring Prosperity, Joy, and exciting New Opportunities.
12/25/2023

May the Coming New Year Bring Prosperity, Joy, and exciting New Opportunities.

And Happy New Year 🎉 We wish you and your loved ones a healthy, happy, and safe holiday season. & May the coming New Year bring prosperity, joy, and exciting new opportunities. Thank you for being a

11/25/2023

Native American Heritage Day is an opportunity to seek out Indigenous stories, learn about Native cultures and practices, and appreciate the richness that Indigenous people bring to our diverse country.

North America contains the traditional homelands of diverse Indigenous peoples. Each Tribe has distinctive dress, cultural practices, traditional tools and crafts, recipes, music, games and artwork.

Interior programs, partnerships and public lands preserve and share the stories and heritage of Indigenous people.

Photo at Seinanyédi, “it goes up and down” (Jicarilla Apache) or Great Sand Dunes by Patrick Myers / Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

11/16/2023

Grand Prismatic Spring is one of the most visited sites in Yellowstone National Park. This week's tells the amazing story of the spring's extreme lifeforms—not just bacteria, but humans who go to great lengths to learn more about such spectacular features.

https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/yellowstones-spectacular-spring-story-grand-prismatic-and-little-dipper

Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest hot spring in the United States, and one of the largest in the world. The feature is located in Midway Geyser Basin—so named because it is between the Upper and Lower Geyser Basins—and is one of the most popular attractions in Yellowstone National Park.

The first accounts of Grand Prismatic Spring are probably from 1839, when a group of trappers noted a “boiling lake” 300 feet across. Such an impressive feature could only be Grand Prismatic Spring, and in fact the description left by trapper Osborne Russell is the earliest written account of a Yellowstone thermal feature that can be definitely identified. Russell’s account is worth reproducing in its entirety:

“At length we came to a boiling Lake about 300 ft in diameter forming nearly a complete circle as we approached on the South side The stream which arose from it was of three distinct Colors from the west side for one third of the diameter it was white, in the middle it was pale red, and the remaining third on the east light sky blue Whether it was something peculiar in the state of the atmosphere the day being cloudy or whether it was some Chemical properties contained in the water which produced this phenomenon I am unable to say and shall leave the explanation to some scientific tourist who may have the Curiosity to visit this place at some future period - The water was of deep indigo blue boiling like an immense cauldron running over the white rock which had formed [round] the edges to the height of 4 or 5 feet from the surface of the earth sloping gradually for 60 or 70 feet. What a field of speculation this presents for chemist and geologist.”

It would be several decades before any chemists or geologists visited the site to better understand the feature

The 1870 Langford-Doane-Washburn expedition—one of the first organized explorations of the Yellowstone region—also noted the spring as well as neighboring Excelsior Geyser, but they were running short of provisions and so were not able to spend much time in the area.

The most detailed early description of the feature came from the Hayden expedition of 1871—the first federally funded exploration of Yellowstone. In his report, geologist Ferdinand Hayden recorded: “This is perhaps the handsomest spring in the whole Park, and it is certainly one of the largest, if not the largest. … I have named it Prismatic on account of the brilliant coloring displayed in it.”

The actual diameter of Grand Prismatic Spring at its widest point is 370 feet—longer than an American football field!

The colors that make Grand Prismatic famous are a result of extreme organisms living in the hot water. The center of the pool is near boiling temperature and has a brilliant blue color. Away from the center, different thermophilic species thrive at different temperatures, giving the pool the characteristic pigments that are found not just at Grand Prismatic, but many hot springs in Yellowstone National Park.

Grand Prismatic is so large, however, that it is hard to access its depths from the shore. To learn more about the characteristics of the spring, a feat of daring was required by Park Geologist Roderick “Rick” Hutchinson.

In the early 1990s, Hutchinson worked with boat-builder Mark Poppert, of Livingston, Montana, to design a craft that could be used to investigate Yellowstone’s largest hot springs. The structure of the boat was based on a similar vessel that was used to explore hot springs in New Zealand. Dubbed “Little Dipper,” the boat was 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, and exceptionally stable, with flotation chambers that would ensure that it would not sink—it would still float even if the bottom fell out! Little Dipper also included a porthole in the middle of the boat, allowing direct access to the water for instruments and measurements without having to lean over the side.

Hutchinson and colleagues rowed out to the boiling water at the center of Grand Prismatic multiple times, but never wore life vests. “It's not going to be much use to you if you go in the drink," was Hutchinson’s quip. Hutchinson attempted a sounding to determine the depth of the spring and found that it was over 120 feet, but that depth is uncertain—the line might have been folded. The greatest depth measured in other springs in the region is about 40 feet.

Although no longer in use, Little Dipper made multiple trips onto Grand Prismatic Spring, as well as other springs in Yellowstone (including Morning Glory Pool), for research and to clean out litter.

Tragically, Hutchinson and visiting geologist Diane Dustman were killed in an avalanche near Heart Lake in 1997. Rick’s incredible legacy lives on, however, in the better understanding he provided of Yellowstone’s remarkable thermal features, including Grand Prismatic Spring—a testament to extreme life on Earth.

(Photo: Yellowstone National Park employees Rick Hutchinson (right) and Jim Peaco (left) guide the specially designed Little Dipper boat into the boiling waters of Grand Prismatic Spring to collect measurements of the temperature and structure of the feature. National Park Service photo by Josh Robbins in 1996.)

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Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Michael Poland, geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.

"Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud." — Maya Angelou
06/08/2023

"Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud." — Maya Angelou

06/03/2023

Bears doing Bear things.

05/31/2023

Longevity has its place.

The Queen has re-emerged with a mini me.
05/20/2023

The Queen has re-emerged with a mini me.

At 27 years old, world-famous bear is now the oldest known grizzly female to reproduce and raise cubs in a half-century of monitoring the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem population.

Wait for it!
04/18/2023

Wait for it!

A bear snuck up on a man reading peacefully on his patio in Asheville, NC. - Videos from The Weather Channel | weather.com

Grizzly  #881 is a monstrous creature and the epitome of a cautionary tale. There’s always a bigger bear.
04/15/2023

Grizzly #881 is a monstrous creature and the epitome of a cautionary tale. There’s always a bigger bear.

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265 E Simpson Avenue
Jackson, WY
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