[Geysers] Shoshone Geyser Basin Report

[Gordon Bower]

On Tue, 21 Sep 2004, Kim Chambers wrote:

> Also interesting to note is the thermal basin that had a
> defacto trail thru it to Shoshone Lake when I last visited
> in 1991 has been signed as closed to protect and preserve
> the rare species within it - seems like a good idea to me.

Does anyone know what the approved access route to the geyser basin is for
canoeists, if this trail has been closed?

The Shoshone Creek delta and its surroundings are closed to boating as a
waterfowl nesting area. Landing next to the feature you call "Burning
Eyes" is the only short and dry way in from the shore.

The alternatives seem to be landing at the campsite the other side of
Basin Bay (and this is a backpackers-only campsite!) and hiking about a
mile to get around the bay and follow the trail from Lone Star in from the
north, or landing way down at the southwest corner of the lake the other
side of the marshes, bushwhacking inland to a trail, and coming up from
south of the horse camp.

More sensible would be relocating the trail to the nonthermal ridges above
the acidic thermal area, maybe.

Is there anything posted about what rare species are being preserved? I do
recall a colony of gigantic grasshopperlike creatures swarming out of
underground burrows right at the east end of the thermal area, something
I've not seen anywhere else. They did live right ON the trail, though,
while anything that lived in the acidic pools shouldn't have been being
walked on anyway.

On a lighter note -
If Pecten has gone dormant, that is a wonderfully ironic self-fulfilling
prophecy. "Pecten" is a genus of scallop (they look much like the Shell
Oil logo) and we already have too many Shell Springs. In Shoshone alone
there are probably ten features whose craters look vaguely seashell-like.
On the other hand, if one of those cools off and becomes choked with a
mass of slimy algae in its vent... "pectin" is a plant fiber used in
jelly-making, and as we already have a Jelly Geyser and a Leather Pool...

GRB