KTVQ

Posted: Jan 24, 2010 4:20 PM
Updated: Jan 26, 2010 12:13 PM

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK - Since the 1872 tourists have enjoyed our country's first national park. 

And lucky for us, it happens to be right in our own backyard. 
    
Yellowstone Park offers some of the world's most exquisite hot springs and geysers attracting park goers during all seasons of the year.

Even on a cold, January day tourists take in the sights as steam rises and water trickles down the limestone terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs.

Located on the north end of Yellowstone National Park, the ever-changing hot springs are different from other thermal areas around the park resembling a cave turned inside out.

The natural wonders have strict rules with visitors confined to boardwalks only.

But take a drive about two miles north of Mammoth and you better have your bathing suit.

The Boiling River.  One of Montana's worst kept secrets.

"We like hot springs, we like swimming, it's warm, it's a good chance to get out a little bit," says Livingston resident Melynda Harrison.  "They sit in strollers or backpacks or trailers for the rest of the day."

Located on the Gardiner River, runoff from the thermal features mixes with freezing river water, creating a relaxing, steamy winter escape.

"We probably come down to the park a couple times a month," explains Harrison.  "We probably make it into the boiling river maybe, I don't know, once a month or every few months."

The Harrison's are regulars at the Yellowstone hot spot, but for Ann Dodds, 9, she was experiencing her first ti

me at the boiling river and has become her favorite park attraction.

"I thought it was going to be fun because I thought maybe it would feel like my bathtub at home," Dodds says with a smile.

A nice whirlpool bath, in the most natural of settings.

"It's just a beautiful scenic place," says Harrison.  "I mean you could go to a swimming pool or a developed hot spring, which we also do, but to sit out here and look at the mountains and the ice of the river and the snow and hang out with your kids, it's a nice morning."

So, there's a look at two ways to enjoy the thermal areas at Yellowstone Park -- and both fit pretty nicely into a weekend adventure.