Photos

This cliff overlooks Howard Eaton Trail just south of Mammoth Hot Springs. A part of aptly named Terrace Mountain, it was originally formed as a hot spring terrace. For thousands of years now, massive limestone rocks have sheered off, tumbled down, and ultimately come to rest as a jumble of oddly angled travertine boulders called The Hoodoos. After scaling a couple, I stood among The Hoodoos, a favorite of rock climbers, as I took this photo.

It was about an hour before sunset, and the little section of trail below the cliff was in deep shadow. As a result, dusk had come early. The waning moon, lagging behind the sun, was still visible over the rim.

Howard Eaton Trail, Yellowstone, August 8, 2008