[Geysers] Geyser Report -- June 5 (Stephens)

[Lynn Stephens]

On May 28 I wrote that I hated to give up when Gemini's interval had stretched out to at least 7h05m because (1) I wanted to find out just how long the interval would be and (2) I was hoping Crack would erupt.  This afternoon while sitting out a thunderstorm in the pick-up watching a series of Gemini, I was rewarded by an eruption of Crack, the first eruption I have seen since July 2006.   The eruption caught me by surprise because it occurred as I was expecting a final eruption in a Gemini series.  About three minutes into the eruption I realized I should take afew pictures just to document that it really did erupt, but it was cool and rainy so most of the pictures are just steam.  Genean:  I'll get a short piece written up this weekend about today's observations for the June Sput.
 
The eruption of Crack was a reward for some recent visitor comments:
    As I was writing a sympathy card:  "Are you signing autographs for the bears?" with a snide tone.
    While Dave DeWitt and I were watching an eruption near the end of a series:  "You forgot to bring the hot dogs."  
    Then, as I was watching and timing an eruption during a series, there was the woman who asked if I was recording heights.  When I responded, "No, I'm recording starts and stops," she said, "Oh really?  Can't you do better than that?"  Huh????  So I showed her my logbook.  Then she asked if I knew this place is going to erupt any day now so wasn't I concerned?  I replied, "For 7 months of the year I live 100 yards from the Pacific Ocean and I'm much more likely to be killed by a tsunami.  Besides, if Yellowstone does blow, I want to be here instead of dying in the world-wide winters that are going to follow the eruption."  She agreed that was probably a wise sentiment.  Then she expressed her concern about whether I was safe being out there in the basin all by myself.  I started to give her a reply, but then she noticed my little FRS radio.  She said she was glad to see I had the radio and could call someone if I got into trouble.  I didn't bother telling her the radio doesn't transmit very far and I doubt my brand new pickup is going to strand me in the Lower Geyser Basin the way the old pickup almost did a couple times.
 
Yesterday afternoon Maureen Edgerton and I were talking about Pink Cone.  I indicated it frequently did its "jump-shift",  and especially short interval compared to the average, overnight--early evening.  KC and Julie Thomson caught an unexpected Pink Cone start at 1936 June 4.  Julie told me the road bubblers were not active prior to the start of the eruption.  She and KC also said the eruption seemed to lack some of the characteristics of a "normal" eruption, and the duration was fairly short at only 88 or 89 minutes.  (Sorry, I forgot to write down the exact duration.)  I saw Pink Cone this afternoon at 1807ns (steam cloud sharply rising as I was writing notes about water level in Pebble.)
 
Lemon Spring was down about 8-10 inches this afternoon.
 
The elephant heads and sulphur colored paintbrush started blooming yesterday.
 
While watching Flood yesterday I saw an osprey with a fish.  Later in the afternoon I saw an osprey flying in the meadows north and east of White Dome.  I don't think it saw any fish out there.  This morning I finally spotted the two swans that have been floating on the Firehole River between Nez Perce and Firehole picnic areas.
 
Lynn Stephens
 
 
 
 
 
 
 		 	   		  
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