The Instagram account Tourons of Yellowstone (@touronsofyellowstone) recently shared footage of yet another thoughtless visitor.
The footage showed the visitor kneeling on the side of a designated walkway and dipping her fingers into a hot spring. "Oh, my God. It's actually hot," she said.
Indeed, it is hot. Hot springs in Yellowstone reach about 198 degrees Fahrenheit. Tourists have suffered second-degree burns for getting too curious about them. Worse still, 20 people have died from burns in Yellowstone's many geothermal pools, geysers, mudpots, steam vents, and hot springs. Even the gases they emit can reach toxic levels.
"Geothermal attractions are one of the most dangerous natural features in Yellowstone, but I don't sense that awareness in either visitors or employees," Yellowstone principal geologist Hank Heasler said.
It's for this reason that the National Park Service has rules against these kinds of interactions, but there's more to it than just personal safety.
These geothermal areas are delicate ecosystems tailored to specific heat and acidity levels. Introducing foreign materials to them disrupts that chemistry and microbial life in the pools. Some of Yellowstone's thermal areas feature distinctive color schemes due to their unique makeups, but as tourists deposit trash in them, the colors change, indicating a clear disruption of the ecosystem.
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Despite signs and other warnings, many visitors often ignore regulations at Yellowstone. Some have tried cooking food in hot springs, while others have been banned and fined for going off-trail.
Instagram users who know better were quick to call out the bad behavior.
"I have no words!" one said.
"As a Ranger there I got wet from Tantalus Creek and noticed a mild burn on my hand about twenty minutes later. Never forgot my gloves again," another wrote. "I am sure she experienced the same sensation."
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