<head><style>body{font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:9pt;background-color: #ffffff;color: black;}</style></head><body id="compText"><style>body{font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:9pt;background-color: #ffffff;color: black;}</style>Hello Everyone!<br><br>    We were able to spend Friday, Saturday, and part of Sunday in the park for opening.  As you already know, the Upper Geyser Basin paths were closed (due to carcasses) except for right around Old Faithful.  The Beehive Overlook trail was open.   The trails at Norris, the beginning of the path at the LGB, and the path to the Beehive Overlook had packed snow a couple of feet high in places.  By Sunday, the packed snow was mushy and the edges of navigable boardwalk were getting bigger at Norris.  The weather Friday was cold with wind, rain, and snowy mix.  Saturday and Sunday, though, the weather was beautiful!<br><br>    I spent an hour at Steamboat on Saturday and again on Sunday.   On Saturday morning, I saw about 70% concerted minors.   Although the South Vent wasn't as high as I have sometimes seen it, it was putting out very good amounts of water in the run-off channel at times.  I saw some South Vent jetting.  The North Vent was stronger than I usually see it, with some possible jetting.  On Sunday (about 11:00-12:00), the minors were about 50% concerted and 50% North Vent initiated.  I only saw one South Vent initiated minor during the hour.  Steamboat seemed weaker on Sunday and also seemed to be in a downward trend from it's weekly cycle.  The YVO temperature graph was consistent with that.  The temperature graph has also been showing that the temperatures of the Steamboat minors over the past month or so have been rising.  It hit 32 degrees C before noon today (Apr 22) - before the eruption in July the peak minors and the eruption hit close to 40.  (I don't know how much the air temperature affects the run-off temperature.)  Also, we saw what we think was a new intermittent blipping feature next the the front run-off channel.<br><br>    The birds are back!  I saw mountain bluebirds, sandhill cranes, bald eagles, osprey, robins, ducks, Canada geese, and another large hawk that I couldn't see at the right angle to identify.   The bison were a few here and there with a couple of small herds.  I didn't see many elk, although one decided that standing in the middle of the road was a good place to be.  (It must have been warm there.)   The nest by Riverside Drive was empty.  I didn't see any swans this year.  There was a coyote that entertained us Saturday while we were gazing from our cars in the Inn parking lot.  Sunday, a sandhill crane landed in the meadow between us and Lion.   He looked like a hang-glider coming in for a landing!  During Grand, he and 2 other sandhills (the others seemed to be up past Sulphide Spring) were calling to eachother.   It was very cool listening to them talk and made up for not being able to hear much of Grand.  Finally the other 2 joined the one in the meadow.   I could also hear at least one more behind the Inn.   <br><br>   Both the Firehole and the Madison were running high.  Gibbon Falls was at its best with lots of muddy yellowish water.<br><br>   I saw 2 Grands with durations over 12 minutes.  One of them had a 3 minute 50 second 2nd burst and the other was a single burst.  The North Dwarf looked like it was off on Saturday afternoon.<br><br>   It was great to be back in the park and visit with gazers!  I hope to see many of you there this season.<br><br>Polly Panos<br></body>