Yellowstone Lake (September 6, 2025)

In June and July, Yellowstone cutthroat trout spawn up the Yellowstone River. From the Fishing Bridge, you can watch the spawning frenzy in the water and the feeding frenzy in the air, as the trout are an easy catch for eagles, osprey, and pelicans. The bridge has been permanently closed to fishermen since 1973 due to overfishing and habitat impact.

Yellowstone Lake is the largest high elevation lake in North America. It's 20 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a maximum depth of 430 feet. The Fishing Cone is a hot spring along the lake where fishermen traditionally cooked their freshly caught fish. The practice was banned in 1912.

The orange color is caused by heat-loving microorganisms that thrive in the cooler, outflowing water from the hotter Black Pool in the background.

Black Pool, next to the lake, was inky black until 1991, when an energy transfer increased the pool's temperature killing the microbes that made it black. The pool became a bright teal blue.