It’s Trivia Tuesday folks! Did you know there are now 424 units within the National Park System? These units cover more than 85 million acres in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories. With so many units, there’s plenty to learn, which is why I pen a monthly quiz and trivia piece for the National Parks Traveler. Sure, you know a lot about your job role where ever you work, but how much do you know about national parks?
Click on the image above to go to the quiz.
The image you see here is of Spruce Tree House in Mesa Verde National Park. True or False: it’s the largest cliff dwelling in the park. To find out the answer, go to the quiz and look at the bottom of the piece. But, wait, why not just test your knowledge by looking at the entire quiz first, then reading the trivia, *then* checking the answers. You might learn something new with which to impress friends, family, and co-workers.
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What you see in this image is a part of what is known as a “sun halo.” It’s an atmospheric phenomenon, which is an event created by the interaction of sunlight or moonlight with the atmosphere, water, rain, clouds, dust, or other particulate matter. The belt of Venus, a rainbow, crepuscular rays, anticrepuscular rays, the Northern Lights – those are all atmospheric phenomena and I have written about photographing them in my latest article published today in the National Parks Traveler.
Just click on the image above to be taken to that article.
This image was captured during a hike along the Carroll Rim Trail in the Painted Hills Unit of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Oregon. This trail is the longest trail (maybe a mile one-way) in this particular unit and worth the hike up to the top for a 360-degree view.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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It’s the last day of #volcanoweek so let’s start today off with a volcano quiz question.
Brokeoff Mountain (far right in this image) in Lassen Volcanic National Park is a remnant of the much larger and broader ___.
a) Mount Tacoma
b) Mount Tahoma
c) Mount Tehama
d) Mount Assiniboine
That’s one of the quiz questions in my latest quiz and trivia piece published in today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler. Why not click on the image above and go on over there to test your national parks knowledge, read the trivia, and maybe even learn a little something new.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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It’s #funfactFriday folks! And today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler features a contribution from the Caldera Chronicles, a weekly feature produced by collaboration by scientists and the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.
Today’s article is all about how the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone came into being. Granted, it’s not like the Grand Canyon of Arizona, but it’s a pretty cool (and colorful) place all on it’s own, “Stretching from the Lower Falls to the Tower Falls area, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is about 28 km (17 miles) long, 250–350 meters (820–1150 feet) deep, and 450–1200 meters (1500–4000 feet) across. It appears to be a surprisingly young feature of the region, having mostly formed during and immediately following the last ice age, within the past 20,000 years or so. “
To read more about this and view the video, click the image above.
These shots were captured during my autumn 2019 visit to Yellowstone National Park. I’d wanted to see the Lower Falls area back during the summer of 2018, as I made my way from TX to WA, but the crowds were horrendous and there was absolutely no place to park – seriously, every single parking space was filled. On the other hand, this visit resulting in these images was great – definitely no crowds.
It’s #FunFactFriday folks! According to the 2021 annual report put out by Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, which continues to work at locating every single hydrothermal feature within Yellowstone National Park, there is a current count of 1,100 thermal features within Norris Geyser Basin alone!
Pictured here is another “same place, different season” set of images captured at Porcelain Basin, a smaller area within the larger Norris Geyser Basin purview, showing some of those 1,100 thermal features.
There are times when I deliberately set out to photograph a spot I’ve already captured at some other time, but this was not one of those times. I just happened to be standing at the same view area slong the boardwalk – one time in early October (early autumn), then again in mid February (late winter) and discovered just this morning I’d taken photos of that same landscape.
The autumn image was captured with the Canon 5DS I used to own, and the winter image was photographed with my Sony a7riv. Both cameras used a 24-105mm lens (each their own brand). The 24-105mm lens is a great travel lens with a nice focal range that produces great landscape retults.
It’s #TriviaTuesday folks! If you visit Lassen Volcanic National Park in California, you’ll have the opportunity to see all four types of volcano: plug dome (aka lava dome), cinder cone, shield, and strato (aka composite). And you can hike up to each of these, too. Lassen Peak is one of the world’s largest plug domes, Prospect Peak is a shield volcano, Brokeoff Mountain is an eroded part of stratovolcano Mount Tehama, and, well, Cinder Cone is a cinder cone. You can even hike up to and then down into Cinder Cone, pictured here.
This shot was captured with my iPhone. And speaking of iPhones, and smartphones in general, my latest photo column has been published in the National Parks Traveler: Getting Great Smartphone Shots – Part 2.
To read the article, click on the image above
I’m an SLR gal, but I readily admit the smartphone camera is an amazing piece of technology and smartphone cameras can get some pretty cool shots. I used mine when I neglected to bring along a particular wide-angle lens for my other camera during my own hike up to Cinder Cone. And I wanted to prove, not only to myself, but to you also, that you can get some very nice images with your smartphone.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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It’s time to check out this month’s quiz and trivia piece I wrote for the National Parks Traveler. How much *do* you know about the units of the National Park System?
One of the questions in the quiz – actually, the very first question – deals with the images (one of them, anyway) you see above of the large dacite boulder seen in the Devastated Area of Lassen Volcanic National Park. What are those round-ish things you see within the dacite bouler? Btw, dacite is an igneous rock that forms from viscous (thick, slow-flowing) lava. Those small white inclusions you see are bits of quartz.
To take the quiz and read the trivia, click on either image above.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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It’s time for another National Parks Quiz and Trivia piece, courtesy of yours truly and published in today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler. Just how much do you really know about the national parks and other protected lands of the National Park System? Find out with the multiple choice questions, followed by a bit of park trivia, followed by the answers. You might learn something new with which to dazzle your friends, family, and coworkers.
To take the quiz and read the trivia, click on the image above.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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Ok, be honest. What comes to mind when I write the word “exfoliation?” To me, a picture of dry, flaky skin first comes to mind. However, exfoliation has a geological context to it, too. It’s a weathering process and one of the best places to see this process is along Tioga Road in Yosemite National Park.
As you drive that road, take a look at the granite hills and domes all around you. Notice that interesting sort of “onion peel” effect on the rock layers? That’s exfoliation! It’s a type of weathering and is common in granites.
You see, granite formed beneath the earth’s surface, under immense pressure. So, when the surface sediments and rocks – collectively termed as overburden – covering that granite are eroded or removed and that granite is exposed, the pressure beneath which the granite lay is gone and the granite begins to expand, forming all sorts of fractures (joints). Weathering (like frost heaving) causes plates, or flakes of rock to strip away the surface rock much like onion skin peels away from the onion.
And now you know.
Copyright Rebecca L. Latson, all rights reserved.
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Old Faithful erupting at Upper Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National ParkHeart Spring in the foreground and the Lion Group of geysers in the background at Upper Geyser BasinThe scalloped edges of Doublet Pool at Upper Geyser BasinA bright bacterial mat leading toward a hot spring at Biscuit Basin.Geyser Beads
It’s #TriviaTuesday Folks! So, how many of you have ever visited one of the geyser basins in Yellowstone National Park, marveling at the colorful hot springs and the energetic geysers? Do you know how to tell if what you are looking at is a geyser or hot spring (if there is no sign to identify it)? Especially if a geyser, when not erupting, looks like a hot spring?
According to a cool little video on the NPS site for Yellowstone, you should look at the edges of a thermal feature. “Hot springs often have ledges or walls of sinter (silica deposits) around them, because as the water level fluctuates, it leaves behind silica deposits. The edges may even be scalloped or lacy, such as what you see when looking at Doublet Pool in Upper Geyser Basin.
“Beadwork,” or pebbly-looking sinter indicates a geyser. “As the water splashes with each eruption, it deposits silica, creating a bumpy appearance.” At some geysers that look like hot springs, you’ll notice rounded, riverstone-like pebbles beneath the water. These rounded stones are called “geyser eggs” and are formed by silica deposition and water movement.
Colorful orange and yellow bacterial mats are also good indicators of hot springs, since that means the water is warm enough for thermophilic (heat-loving) bacteria to thrive, but not hot enough to be a geyser.
The thing is, the landscape beneath and above Yellowstone is always changing. Excelsior Crater Geyser used to be a geyser, and is now a hot spring – well, it’s a hot spring right now that hasn’t erupted in several decades, but it could become a geyser again if the conditions change.
All images on these posts are the exclusive property of Rebecca L. Latson and Where The Trails Take You Photography. Please respect my copyright and do not use these images on Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Snapchat or any other business, personal or social website, blog site, or other media without my written permission. Thank you.
You can reach me at rebeccalatson@wherethetrailstakeyou.com
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