Old Faithful and Upper Geyser Basin

Last Updated on September 12, 2023 by

To many, Old Faithful is synonymous with Yellowstone and it is certainly the most likely spot in the park to attract huge crowds. But there is more to see than just one geyser, and more than one way to see them. Yellowstone has approximately half of the world’s geysers and most of them are located at the Upper Geyser Basin. There are at least 150 geysers within the boundaries of a mile long boardwalk in the basin. This is the most densely concentrated geyser region in the world with five major geysers—Old Faithful, Grand, Castle, Daisy, and Riverside all located here. Two additional areas, Black Sand Basin and Biscuit Basin, are also within the basin located a short distance away.

Did you know?
The Upper Geyser Basin also has a wealth of other hydrothermal features along the boardwalk. Here is a quick primer on the different features:

Hot Springs – an outflow of hot water typically collecting in shallow depressions and forming thermal pools
Geyser – these require two things – a large pool of heated water underground and a constricted opening for the steam to escape once sufficient pressure builds, just like a tea kettle
Fumaroles – holes in active volcanic areas that emit a mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide – that rotten egg smell
Mud Pots – formed when acidic steam eats away at the softer surrounding rock

How much time do I need?

The Upper Geyser Basin is a solid half day that can easily be stretched into a full day trip, particularly if Old Faithful doesn’t cooperate with your plans. Fortunately, Old Faithful has been faithful for so long the Park Rangers can predict it to within ten minutes. Eruptions happen every 35 to 120 minutes apart about 20 times every day with the predicted times available on a variety of media.

Here are a few: NPS Park App, Twitter, Geyser Times. You can also watch a live stream here – NPS WebCam.

The easiest way to guarantee a full but unhurried day is to visit Black Sand Basin or Biscuit Basin after you have completed your boardwalk loop. Biscuit Basin also has a very popular 2.6 mile hike to Mystic Falls, but we didn’t hike it.

As an alternative, you could consider hiking Sentinel Meadows with a drive though Firehole Lake Drive to end your day. Sentinel Meadows is a fairly easy hike with a high probably of seeing bison herds up close and personal. It is also the site of the Queen’s Laundry Bathhouse historic site. Yet another failed project by Superintendent Norris, the Queen’s Laundry was supposed to be a multiple room bath house at the edge of the Queen’s Laundry travertine spring, but was never completed. Full disclosure, we were so enthralled by the bison herd we never even noticed the ruins.

If you only have limited time in the park, you can also combine this with a trip to Grand Prismatic Spring for a very full day.

Old Faithful Viewing Options

Begin your day with a stop into the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center. If you haven’t already figured out when the next eruption is scheduled to occur, this is the place. It also has an excellent exhibit hall, and if you have kids there is an entire hands-on space in the Young Scientists room. Naturally, you can also pick up pamphlets, souvenirs and snacks. We feel one of the most underutilized aspects of the Visitor Center are the Park Rangers. They can answer virtually any question from mundane park logistics to botany and horticulture to great hikes and animal sightings. If you spot a Ranger, do not hesitate to walk up and ask a question, they are universally the most polite and enthusiastic government employees you will ever meet.

Once you have the schedule sorted, Old Faithful has three viewing options and the amount of time you have before the next eruption may determine which you choose. Of course, you are also not limited to watching a single eruption and leaving, like many people do.

Old Faithful Up Close

If you have just missed an event, head over to the Old Faithful Inn and grab a snack, or have a meal before walking out to the observation deck to wait for the next one. You can also take a free 45 minute guided tour of this massive structure listed as one of the largest log structures in the world. While we did not partake on this visit, past experience says this landmark on the National Register of Historic places is well worth your time.

If you absolutely want to get as close as possible, taking up a seat on the boardwalk is the way to go. It is also going to be the most crowded by a serious margin, so plan on getting there at least thirty minutes early, particularly if you are visiting during ‘business hours’. Arriving early, before 8AM will significantly reduce the crowds.

Observation Point

Our choice, if you are physically able, is to make the short hike to Observation Point. Crowds here are going to be smaller no matter what time of day you visit. Anyone who knows me knows how much of a people person I am (he says sarcastically), so it was no minor sacrifice to head out to Old Faithful to take the Observation Trail loop.

Fortunately, the half mile rule continues to prevail – that’s the drop dead point for the typical tourist if you weren’t aware. As soon as we hit some elevation, we were relatively alone. Watching the geyser from an overhead view presents a different interesting perspective from my point of view, and I only had to share it with 10 other people, rather than 1000 down below. Again, a win for me. While the viewing from the boardwalk certainly has value, I think the view from Observation Point provides better perspective on just how large the geyser is.

Just a quick note here – we have done the typical tourist Old Faithful spectator spectacle. It just happened to be on a previous trip when we only had three days in the park. Because it was off season, there were way less people. We got great views and great pictures. For our post retirement trip, we have decided to try to stay off the beaten path for the most part. There will be times, however, when you just have to be a tourist with everyone else.

The geyser eruption will last up to ten minutes, but the bulk of the power all comes in the opening minutes. Once the eruption concludes, there is generally a mad scramble to get to the parking lot. Rather than take that approach, and the headaches that come with it, we recommend taking the Boardwalk trail to see the other formations in the basin.

Upper Geyser Boardwalk

Regardless where you choose to watch the Old Faithful from, the boardwalk is easily accessible. We left Observation Point and headed toward the aptly named Solitary Geyser before heading down past Geyser Hill and rejoining the boardwalk.

I have to say that the geyser formations along the path, although substantively smaller, are visually more interesting than Old Faithful. Maybe it’s because you can get right up on them to see how deep they actually are, and the array of really vivid colors.

I agree with Shawn that the Boardwalk Trail was more interesting than Old Faithful proper. And I have to admit that there is so much more thermal activity than I thought (or remembered) in Yellowstone. It’s not just the geysers, but all the hot springs, pools and thermal vents that are constantly spewing sulfur scented smoke. Best thing we saw, Mr. Marmot sunning himself on a rock with not a care in the world. What we did not see was crazy doomsday Woody Harrelson screaming from the top of the mountain. Although there were a few spectators who made a reasonable facsimile.

Here are some formations we thought were particularly photograph worthy:

For our day in the Upper Geyser Basin, we spent about 45 minutes in the Visitor Center, an hour climbing to Observation Point and waiting for the eruption, roughly 30 minutes having a light snack while the crowds dispersed, and then another hour and half completing the boardwalk loop. Add in time to and from the parking lot and sundry loitering and our day here was just short of five hours, and this was not our first visit.

Always Remember the Seven Principles of Leave No Trace

Plan Ahead and Prepare, Stay on Designated Trails, Dispose of Waste Properly, Don’t Take Anything You Didn’t Bring with You, Minimize Campfire Impacts, Respect Wildlife, Be Considerate of Other Visitors

Courtesy: Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics