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was named
Crystal Cascade, and the stream Cascade Creek. In the bed of the gorge were to be found an infinite variety of volcanic specimens, quartz, feldspar, mica, granites, lavas, basalts, composite crystals; in fact, everything, from asbestos to obsidian, was represented by fragments in the bed of this stream. There were also beautiful clay stone specimens, of which we afterward learned the origin. At the foot of the gorge and on the margin of the Yellowstone stood a high promontory of concretionary lava, literally filled with volcanic butternuts. Many of these were loose, and could be taken out of the rock with the hand; broken open they were invariably hollow, and lined with minute quartz crystals of various tints. This formation is rare, but occurs frequently in the great basin. From the outer point of this promontory can be seen the foot of the upper fall of the Yellowstone, and I climbed to the summit to obtain a view. In scenic beauty, the upper cataract far excels the lower. It has life, animation, while the lower one simply follows its channel; both, however, are eclipsed, as it were, by the singular wonders of the mighty cañon below. This deepens rapidly; the stream flowing over rapids continually. ... Several of the party descended into the chasm a short distance below the fall, but could not reach its foot. ... The walls of the cañon are of gypsum, in some places having an incrustation of lime white as snow, from which the reflected rays of the sun produce a dazzling effect, rendering it painful to look into the gulf. In others the rock is crystalline and almost wholly sulphur, of a dark yellow color, with streaks of red, green and black, caused by the percolations of hot mineral waters, of which thousands of springs are seen, in many instances, flowing from spouts high up on the walls on either side. The combinations of metallic lusters in the coloring of the walls is truly wonderful, surpassing, doubtless, anything of the kind on the face of the globe. The ground slopes to the cañon on the opposite or east side, and from it to the low valley on the west. Three miles below the fall the chasm is 1,050 feet deep. In some places masses of the rock have crumbled and slid down in a talus of loose material at the foot; in others, promontories stand out in all manner of fantastic forms, affording vistas of wonder utterly beyond the power of description. On the caps of these dizzy heights, mountain sheep and elk rest during the night. ... We had come down the ravine at least four miles, and looking upward the fearful wall appeared to reach the sky. It was about 3 o'clock p.m., and stars could be distinctly seen, so much of the sunlight was cut off from entering the chasm. Tall pines on the extreme verge appeared the height of two or three feet. The cañon, as before said, was in two benches, with a plateau on either side, about half way down. This plateau, about a hundred yards in width, looked from below like a mere shelf against the wall; the total depth was not less than 2,500 feet, and more probably 3,000. There are perhaps other canons longer and deeper than this one, but surely none combining grandeur and immensity with peculiarity of formation and profusion of volcanic or chemical phenomena.
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As we approached the Grand Cañon a dull roaring sound warned us that the falls were near at hand. ... I had descended the cañon at a point where the creek joined the river, precipitated into a gorge just above its juncture in a lovely cascade of three falls, in the aggregate 100 feet in height. This
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I was riding ahead, the two pack animals following, and then Mr. Folsom and Mr. Peterson on their saddle horses. I remembered seeing what appeared to be an opening in the forest ahead, which I presumed to be a park, or open country. While my attention was attracted by the pack animals, which had
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compounds. When the old geyser basin was active, the "cooking" of the rock caused chemical alterations in these iron compounds. Exposure to the elements caused the rocks to change colors. The rocks are
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that are still active and visible. The Clear Lake area, which is fed by hot springs, south of the canyon is probably also a remnant of this activity. According to Ken Pierce,
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stopped to eat grass, my saddle horse suddenly stopped. I turned and looked forward from the brink of the great canyon, at a point just across from what is now called
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Although trappers and prospectors who visited the
Yellowstone region had knowledge of the canyon, the first significant descriptions were publicized after the
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and immediate and catastrophic erosion of the present-day canyon. These flash floods probably happened more than once. The canyon is a classic
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before the eruption. The site of the present canyon, as well as any previous canyons, was probably the result of this uplift and related
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Although the original trail no longer exists, there is still a steep stairway down to the base of the lower falls that is called
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For the
Benefit and Enjoyment of the People: A History of Concession Development in Yellowstone National Park-1872-1966
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The Valley of the Upper
Yellowstone: An Exploration of the Headwaters of the Yellowstone River in the Year 1869
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Geography, historic structures and other attractions in the Tower
Roosevelt and Lamar Valley areas
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The report of
Lieutenant Gustavus C. Doane upon the so-called Yellowstone Expedition of 1870
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568:"Uncle Tom's Trail/South Rim Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone NP, WY"
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lava flows, extensive faulting, and heat beneath the surface (related to the
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When
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eruption of about 600,000 years ago, the area was covered by a series of
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on
September 20, 1869, he subsequently wrote these words in his journal:
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A year later during the
Washburn expedition, on August 30–31, 1870, Lt.
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Geography, historic structures and other attractions in the Canyon area
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of the canyon are not well understood, except that it is the result of
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546:. Niwot, Colorado: University Press of Colorado. pp. 179–180.
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and take tourists down into the canyon below the lower falls on
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Aerial view of the Grand Canyon of the
Yellowstone from the east
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flows. The area was also faulted by the doming action of the
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492:. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 31.
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described the canyon with a bit more scientific detail:
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Panorama of the Canyon with the Lower Falls in view.
1026:List of Yellowstone National Park related articles
852:List of Yellowstone National Park related articles
515:, presented to the Secretary of War, February 1871
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83:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and Lower Falls
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1079:Tourist attractions in Park County, Wyoming
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544:Yellowstone Place Names-Mirrors of History
104:Canyon, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
287:Learn how and when to remove this message
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1059:Landforms of Yellowstone National Park
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19:For other uses of "Grand Canyon", see
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1037:Yellowstone buildings and structures
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269:adding citations to reliable sources
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863:Nature of Yellowstone National Park
475:NPS:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
438:The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
429:The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
393:in the canyon are also a result of
203:resident H.F. Richardson (known as
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644:- Tower-Roosevelt and Lamar Valley
164:Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition
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1074:Landforms of Park County, Wyoming
684:Roosevelt Lodge Historic District
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307:by the Yellowstone River, not by
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456: This article incorporates
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225:is approximately a 3-mile hike.
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988:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
759:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
601:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
256:needs additional citations for
160:Cook–Folsom–Peterson Expedition
120:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
72:Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
16:Canyon on the Yellowstone River
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342:was at one time the site of a
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525:Culpin, Mary Shivers (2003).
346:basin that was the result of
21:Grand Canyon (disambiguation)
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338:The canyon below the Lower
331:that formed during several
59:GPX (secondary coordinates)
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933:Chittenden Memorial Bridge
679:Northeast Entrance Station
542:Haines, Aubrey L. (1996).
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209:Chittenden Memorial Bridge
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486:Cook, Charles W. (1965).
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54:GPX (primary coordinates)
29:Map all coordinates using
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37:Download coordinates as:
395:hydrothermal alteration
370:formed at the mouth of
1069:Hot springs of Wyoming
921:Structures and history
804:Slough Creek (Wyoming)
657:Structures and history
607:) at Wikimedia Commons
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364:U.S. Geological Survey
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299:The specifics of the
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865:at Wikimedia Commons
829:Trout Lake (Wyoming)
799:Silver Gate, Montana
265:improve this article
1003:Yellowstone Caldera
993:Silver Cord Cascade
729:Cooke City, Montana
674:Lamar Buffalo Ranch
572:www.hikemasters.com
313:Yellowstone Caldera
122:is the first large
95:Map of upper canyon
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213:Uncle Tom's Trail.
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1084:Yellowstone River
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1013:Yellowstone River
1008:Yellowstone Falls
983:Inspiration Point
938:Uncle Tom's Trail
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861:Media related to
839:Yellowstone River
834:Yellowstone Falls
789:Overhanging Cliff
724:Beartooth Highway
599:Media related to
442:, by Thomas Moran
433:, by Thomas Moran
340:Yellowstone Falls
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223:Uncle Tom's Trail
218:Uncle Tom's Trail
188:Gustavus C. Doane
180:Inspiration Point
154:Uncle Tom's Trail
132:Yellowstone Falls
128:Yellowstone River
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575:. Retrieved
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380:flash floods
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311:. After the
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263:Please help
258:verification
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171:Lamar Valley
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978:Hedges Peak
769:Lamar River
764:Hedges Peak
754:Folsom Peak
374:. When the
360:hot springs
1053:Categories
824:Tower Fall
739:Druid Peak
577:2017-09-21
309:glaciation
734:Cook Peak
404:oxidizing
277:June 2020
205:Uncle Tom
199:In 1890,
166:of 1870.
908:- Canyon
605:category
422:See also
368:ice dams
352:hot spot
348:rhyolite
333:ice ages
329:glaciers
325:faulting
101:Location
408:rusting
321:caldera
305:erosion
301:geology
237:Geology
201:Bozeman
146:History
140:Wyoming
126:on the
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440:(1901)
431:(1872)
391:colors
356:potato
344:geyser
124:canyon
447:Notes
548:ISBN
494:ISBN
399:iron
389:The
317:lava
118:The
267:by
138:in
134:in
44:KML
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