Come on Sun, You Can Do It

I spent a considerable amount of time in the Upper Geyser Basin on this trip. I saw Old Faithful erupt more than twenty times(even at night), but this was my favorite eruption.

Everything came together and made for outstanding images. 

Remnants of storm clouds from the night before moved across the sky.

Just a minute earlier with the sun hidden behind the clouds the scene looked like this. To the east I saw a gap in the clouds and rooted for the sun to come out before the geyser erupted. "Come on sun, you can do it."  

I visited with a guy from Ohio, one of only a few dozen people waiting for the eruption at 7:30 in the morning. We both continued to wait and hoped for the sun. 

The conditions were perfect for great images, the golden grass, the beautiful clouds, the blue sky. All I needed was the sun.

Old Faithful coughed a little and burped a little water and steam, indicating an impending eruption. I held my breath, waiting on the sun.

Just as a column of super heated water and steam shot out of the geyser and over 100 feet into the air everything came together. The clouds parted and the sun shone through.

It was even better than I had hoped. There was more steam, the colors were more vivid, and the eruption lasted longer than most. Old Faithful had shown its best.

The colors and light were unbelievable. I was smiling and laughing as I photographed the scene.

The eruption lasted only a few minutes, five at most. Lucky for me, the sun made it through the clouds just in time and stayed out for at least six minutes. Perfect.

After the eruption a column of steam rose from the cone of Old Faithful Geyser and steam from Castle Geyser mirrored it.

What an excellent morning in an outstanding place. Only Yellowstone.