Yellowstone National Park in Teton County, Wyoming — The American West (Mountains)

Biscuit Basin

By Bernard Fisher, July 24, 2011

1. Biscuit Basin Marker

Inscription. This thermal basin is particularly volatile, unpredictable. On August 17, 1959, an earthquake recorded at 7.5 on the Richter scale had its epicenter just a few miles to the northwest. Four days later, Sapphire Pool began to erupt violently, blowing away the large rock biscuits around the crater. Biscuit Basin was named for those biscuit-shaped mineral formations.

Location. 44° 29.106′ N, 110° 51.15′ W. Marker is in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, in Teton County. Touch for map. Located in the Upper Geyser Basin. Marker is in this post office area: Moran WY 83013, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Fading Glory (approx. 0.8 miles away); Riverside Geyser (approx. one mile away); Grotto Geyser (approx. 1.1 miles away); Daisy Geyser (approx. 1.1 miles away); Giant Geyser (approx. 1.2 miles away); Beauty and Chromatic Pools (approx. 1.3 miles away); Grand Geyser (approx. 1½ miles away); Black Sand Basin (approx. 1.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Yellowstone National Park.

More about this marker. On top is a trail map with the caption, "From the boardwalk loop, longer trails climb out of Biscuit Basin and explore other features: Mystic Falls,

By Bernard Fisher, July 24, 2011

2. Biscuit Basin Marker

Observation Point, Summit Lake, and Fairy Creek Trail."

On the lower right is a photo with the caption, "Other transformations occur here in slow motion. As you walk the ¼-mile loop, notice how the shifting runoff pattern kills forests, creating “bobbysox” trunks saturated with silica."

Also see . . .
1. Yellowstone National Park. (Submitted on August 1, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia.)
2. Geyers - Biscuit Basin. A description and history of the geysers in the Biscuit Basin. (Submitted on August 29, 2015.)

Biscuit Basin image. Click for full size.

By Bernard Fisher, July 24, 2011

3. Biscuit Basin

<i>Sapphire Pool, Yellowstone National Park</i> image. Click for full size.

Photochrom postcard by the Detroit Photographic Company, 1902

4. Sapphire Pool, Yellowstone National Park

Temperature 200-202°F Dimensions 18x30 feet. Sapphire Pool, named for its blue, crystal-clear water and for its resemblance to an Oriental sapphire, was once a placid hot pool. It was not until after the 1959 earthquake that major eruptions occurred. For several years following the earthquake powerful eruptions at two hour intervals reached 150 feet. The force of the eruptions caused the crater to double in size, destroying the biscuit-like formations around its edge, and the crystal-clear water became murky. By 1968 Sapphire ceased to function as a true geyser. Today Sapphire still retains its crystal-clear, blue water, and still violently boils and surges occasionally. - YellowstoneNationalPark.com

Image courtesy of the Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on August 1, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia. This page has been viewed 479 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 1, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Mechanicsville, Virginia. 4. submitted on August 29, 2015.