Get to know Crested Pool
As we continue with this series of posts, this week we’re looking at a neighbor of Castle Geyser. Crested Pool has gone by many other names during the early days of the park before the name was finally officially decided by the USGS place names committee in 1927. Before this, the pool was known as “Devil’s Well,” “Diana’s Spring,” “Castle’s Well” and more. No matter the name, visitors have appreciated this beautiful blue pool for generations.
BASICS:
- Crested Pool is at least 42 feet deep.
- The superheated water (hotter than the boiling point at this altitude) can boil and sizzle along the edges or even boil up in a “bubble shower” eruption that can reach from inches to feet high.
- Has 10 sides to the pool.
WHERE IT’S LOCATED
Crested Pool is just a few short yards from Castle Geyser. To get there, walk from Old Faithful down the paved walking/bike trail to Castle Geyser. Turn at Castle and walk along the boardwalk until it turns again to head down to the bridge. Crested Pool is at this corner.
ABOUT
This 10-sided pool has taken a life. A boy now pictured on the warning signs throughout Yellowstone tragically died here. The controversy of whether he jumped in not believing the pool was hot or lost his way through the steam and fell in by accident was never fully determined. However, as a result, the warning signs were posted, and a railing added. The full story can be found in Lee Whittlesey’s book, Death in Yellowstone. He does an excellent job of presenting all sides of this story.
Superheated water in a pool just means that the water is actually hotter than the boiling point at the altitude in Yellowstone (generally 199° F or 93° C ). You might think the water would be at a constant boil, but often the surfaces of these pools are calm with some sizzling along the edges at times.
ERUPTIONS
Crested Pool has “bubble shower” eruptions where the boiling increases and can rise up to six feet. However, these are not the normal bursting type eruptions you often see with geysers. They happen suddenly and only last seconds.
The 1969 Hebgen Lake earthquake did alter the behavior of Crested Pool. Before the earthquake, it would reportedly fluctuate between 4″ and 12″ down. The water would rise before an eruption of Castle Geyser, showing a possible connection between the two.
While the Hebgen Lake earthquake caused many geysers to increase their activity and temperature, Crested Pool was found with a temperature 50° F (10° C) lower than before. Its water was muddy and about 12″ down. It took a couple of years to recover from the jolt.
Whether Crested Pool is still connected to Castle is not known – or at least I wasn’t able to find any research or documentation thus far. It might be interesting to see if the bubble shower eruptions are more frequent prior to an eruption of Castle Geyser or not.
IN CONCLUSION
This lovely pool is a deadly reminder to the dangers in Yellowstone, and that we all are responsible for our own safety. Please stay on the boardwalks in the geyser basins for your own safety and for the safety of the thermal features. Yellowstone is one of the few places where visitors enjoy geysers and hot springs that are left to their own natural cycles.