Nugget 2: Watching Old Faithful Geyser

In its most glorious eruptions, Old Faithful may reach 180 feet (55 meters) high. The photo at left was taken by Don Forsyth.

A stormy afternoon (below, in a photo by Janet Chapple) lends a gloomy mood to the world's most famous geyser.

Predictions

At Old Faithful Village you'll find it easy to catch an eruption. Predictions are posted during summer and winter daylight hours in the Old Faithful Visitor Center. Lots of benches on Old Faithful's geyserite mound let you wait in comfort, or you can watch from the second floor balcony of Old Faithful Inn.

How often does Old Faithful erupt? In 2003, the average interval between eruptions was about 93 minutes, but the range is from 55 to 118 minutes. The interval has lengthened from the 60 to 65 minutes recorded by early visitor Nathaniel Langford in 1870.

Old Faithful may not last forever. Earthquakes as far away as central Idaho have influenced its intervals in the past and could change the geyser drastically in the future. Also, it is gradually building up deposits of the mineral silica within its throat, which could one day seal it off completely.

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Take a look! Since fall of 1999 the National Park Service has provided a live Web cam focussed on Old Faithful. About every 30 seconds you can access a new picture at the Old Faithful Geyser Web cam page.

 Is this geyser's power less than it used to be? See page 73 of Yellowstone Treasures for the answer.

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