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Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful

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avatar Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 05:07PM
Yep. Potty humor yet again.

http://www.backpacker.com/arrest_pee_old_faithful_yellowstone_urine/blogs/daily_dirt/1027
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iNfrGcynNUWA7rGsrQD5hm33Pq5wD986AACO0

Apparently they got caught on the Old Faithful webcam:

http://redgreenandblue.org/2009/05/13/yellowstone-webcam-catches-men-using-old-faithful-as-toilet/

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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 06:07PM
Am I seeing correctly: on the bottom most picture to the right, are those viewing benches???

(as far as the actual topic goes....what is there to say???)


Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 06:29PM
Quote
Bee
Am I seeing correctly: on the bottom most picture to the right, are those viewing benches???

(as far as the actual topic goes....what is there to say???)


Busy Bee

Those are indeed viewing benches. They get used a lot for ranger talks as well as viewing for each eruption. There are something like 4 or 5 sets of those benches all around the Old Faithful boardwalk.

Apparently there are unofficial groups that keep track of people doing this sort of thing. These employees have already been fired, but I heard they're up for criminal charges to boot.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 06:56PM
I would be willing to bet that alcohol or other intoxicant "was a factor" in this behavior. The time stamp on the video places the activity at time when people could still be wandering around the geysers. Strange. I'm sure there are lots of "behind the scene" activities by concessioner and NPS employees. I recall several episodes of stumbling on "camps" used by High Sierra Camp employees off the beaten path and clearly for "party" purposes.


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 07:42PM
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YPW

Those are indeed viewing benches. They get used a lot for ranger talks as well as viewing for each eruption. There are something like 4 or 5 sets of those benches all around the Old Faithful boardwalk.

Apparently there are unofficial groups that keep track of people doing this sort of thing. These employees have already been fired, but I heard they're up for criminal charges to boot.

US parks are so sophisticated! Benches in the wilderness! (I AM impressed)

As far as those schmucks go: throw the book at 'em!

Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 07:43PM
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Bee
US parks are so sophisticated! Benches in the wilderness! (I AM impressed)

Wilderness? Old Faithful is not wilderness.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 10:27PM
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eeek
Quote
Bee
US parks are so sophisticated! Benches in the wilderness! (I AM impressed)

Wilderness? Old Faithful is not wilderness.

If there is a bear close by, it's wilderness to me!

(in fact, you can include the whole state of Montana while your at it, as far as "wilderness" goes)


Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 10:58AM
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Bee
As far as those schmucks go: throw the book at 'em!

Busy Bee

Wouldn't "putzes" be a better description?
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 07:35PM
Quote
Bee
Am I seeing correctly: on the bottom most picture to the right, are those viewing benches???

(as far as the actual topic goes....what is there to say???)


Busy Bee

This is a pretty typical summer day at Old Faithful:





The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 07:42PM
This is not a summer day at Old Faithful:

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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 08:06PM
This is not a summer day at Old Faithful:

[/quote]

Ahhh! The view from Geyser Hill;
Old Faithful Inn -- the Ahwanhee of Yellowstone (different architects), Lake Hotel is older but OF Inn is iconic.


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 09:42PM
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Frank Furter
Old Faithful Inn -- the Ahwanhee of Yellowstone (different architects), Lake Hotel is older but OF Inn is iconic.

However - Gilbert Stanley Underwood did design the magnificent Old Faithful Lodge. He did that design before the Ahwahnee Hotel.



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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 09:50PM
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However - Gilbert Stanley Underwood did design the magnificent Old Faithful Lodge. He did that design before the Ahwahnee Hotel.


Considering your pre and post pictures of the Lodge, I'm glad they decided to paint it. Looks more colorful.


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/14/2009 09:50PM by Frank Furter.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 10:10PM
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Frank Furter
Quote

However - Gilbert Stanley Underwood did design the magnificent Old Faithful Lodge. He did that design before the Ahwahnee Hotel.


Considering your pre and post pictures of the Lodge, I'm glad they decided to paint it. Looks more colorful.

Yah.

Really though. I got the front B&W photo and the back color photo from the Wikipedia entry on the Old Faithful Lodge. The Lodge has about as good a view of Old Faithful as any other building in the area.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 07:45PM
Quote
Frank Furter
Quote
Bee
Am I seeing correctly: on the bottom most picture to the right, are those viewing benches???

(as far as the actual topic goes....what is there to say???)


Busy Bee

This is a pretty typical summer day at Old Faithful:



I prefer geysers like Riverside to Old Faithful:

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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 11:34PM
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eeek
I prefer geysers like Riverside to Old Faithful:

I believe that I heard once that although Old Faithful is not the most spectacular of the geysers, it is the most predictable, hence tourists get their "fix" of the geyser experience by scheduling it in the intinerary.

Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 10:25AM
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Bee
Quote
eeek
I prefer geysers like Riverside to Old Faithful:

I believe that I heard once that although Old Faithful is not the most spectacular of the geysers, it is the most predictable, hence tourists get their "fix" of the geyser experience by scheduling it in the intinerary.

Busy Bee

I was told that quite a few Yellowstone visitors go on package tours where they fly into West Yellowstone Airport, ride a bus to Old Faithful to see it erupt once, then take the ride back to the airport. It's actually not the most regular or predictable, but the most predictable of the large geysers.

The most spectacular geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin is Giant. I was lucky enough to see it erupt. When I informed a ranger that it was going (I got tired of watching after about 20 minutes), he just stopped his guided walk and told his group that they should go see it when they had the chance. It shoots up to 250 feet (my photo didn't catch it at the peak) and the sheer quantity of water it puts out is amazing. OF puts up a thin stream and the sound is similar to one of those carney games that shoot rubber balls powered by compressed air. Giant sounds like a waterfall. A good metaphor is of a garden hose (OF) compared to a fire hydrant (Giant).

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Strix
Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 01:59PM
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y_p_w

A good metaphor is of a garden hose (OF) compared to a fire hydrant (Giant).

And Steamboat sounds like a broken steam pipe in a power plant.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 10:37PM
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FF
This is a pretty typical summer day at Old Faithful:
Quote


Look, I know I sound like a goof 3/4 of the time (hold those Beaks, Len!) but I am always somewhere between delighted/amazed and aghast at how accessible most US attractions are. In Europe and other places I have been, many of the attractions are as they were 1000 years ago; wheelchair access be damned! Mountain ledges are as dangerous as they really ARE, with no fancy railings et al (occasionally, there are cables that you can hook up to if the ledges are, say, less than a foot wide..ha ha.)

Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 10:41PM
Quote
Bee
Quote
FF
This is a pretty typical summer day at Old Faithful:

Look, I know I sound like a goof 3/4 of the time (hold those Beaks, Len!) but I am always somewhere between delighted/amazed and aghast at how accessible most US attractions are. In Europe and other places I have been, many of the attractions are as they were 1000 years ago; wheelchair access be damned! Mountain ledges are as dangerous as they really ARE, with no fancy railings et al (occasionally, there are cables that you can hook up to if the ledges are, say, less than a foot wide..ha ha.)

Busy Bee




Sounds like Half Dome!


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2009 05:39AM by Frank Furter.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 02:10AM
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Bee
if the ledges are, say, less than a foot wide..



You should try rock climbing ... anything wider than about 5 millimeters is generally considered a ledge.
(Only slightly tongue-in-cheek definition from the Yosemite "Golden Years" of rock climbing. Long Live Camp 4!)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2009 02:28AM by szalkowski.
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Bob Weaver
Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 09:06PM
Yep, they are viewing benches, and they were totally full the day I was there, with people standing behind them too. September 26, 2008. I sat on the edge of that wooden platform, on that very corner that you see in the picture. And as an aside, Old Faithful was much smaller and less impressive than I expected it to be. I found other geysers there to be far more entertaining, for example Clepsydra Geyser was far superior. Old Faithful was the only major disappointment on my trip to Yellowstone.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/14/2009 09:12PM by Bob Weaver.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 09:36PM
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Bob Weaver
Yep, they are viewing benches, and they were totally full the day I was there, with people standing behind them too. September 26, 2008. I sat on the edge of that wooden platform, on that very corner that you see in the picture. And as an aside, Old Faithful was much smaller and less impressive than I expected it to be. I found other geysers there to be far more entertaining, for example Clepsydra Geyser was far superior. Old Faithful was the only major disappointment on my trip to Yellowstone.

Yep - viewing benches. There are viewing benches at many major geysers. Steamboat goes off maybe once or twice a day, and they've got benches there. You can certainly sit on the edge of the boardwalk. They don't mind so much that anyone steps on the ground just inside the edge of the boardwalk as long as one doesn't head towards the geyser.

Of course I saw Giant, Grand, and Oblong go off at the same time in a summer day in 2006 (Giant was absolutely huge and erupted for over an hour):

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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 09:38PM
Yap... viewing benches...
(I figure I might as well say it too...)
(I won't put any pix up tho... but I do have a bunch... )
smiling smiley
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 14, 2009 11:41PM
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y_p_w
[

Of course I saw Giant, Grand, and Oblong go off at the same time in a summer day in 2006 (Giant was absolutely huge and erupted for over an hour):

Is the sound (explosive?) universal to the geysers in general, or does it vary by size and location...(I know, most of you probably have seen all the nature programs, but I have had a TV for 3 years and have not gotten around to any Jellystone Documentries)


Busy Bee
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 06:22AM
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Bee

Is the sound (explosive?) universal to the geysers in general, or does it vary by size and location

Busy Bee
Remarkably quiet. Mostly whooshing and sputtering sounds. No real explosions.


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 05:11PM
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y_p_w
Of course I saw Giant, Grand, and Oblong go off at the same time in a summer day in 2006 (Giant was absolutely huge and erupted for over an hour):]

Grand always goes off a little after I leave:

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Strix
Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 02:09PM
Did anyone post a link to the live web cam? If not here is the static cam. It shows an estimated time of eruption. You can scroll down and click on the 'New' Live Streaming.....OF.
http://www.nps.gov/archive/yell/oldfaithfulcam.htm
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 05:14PM
Rangers have cited six men for walking on Old Faithful – and two of them for urinating at the geyser – after someone outside the park reported seeing them on a live park webcast. The six men were cited for going off trail and into the geyser area last week. Park rangers also cited two of the men for illegally possessing a piece of a park natural resource, and two for urinating at the geyser. All six are scheduled to appear before a federal magistrate. The park has a camera aimed at the geyser 24-hours a day with video streaming over the Internet.
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 06:37PM
When I first saw the Old Faithful parking lot I have to say its size scared me. Summer at Yellowstone might be something I never see.

At least in spring you can't see the whole thing at once:
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avatar Re: Yellowstone concession workers fired for peeing into Old Faithful
May 15, 2009 06:45PM
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eeek
When I first saw the Old Faithful parking lot I have to say its size scared me. Summer at Yellowstone might be something I never see.

At least in spring you can't see the whole thing at once:

Winter used to be very congested with the hundreds (perhaps thousands) of snowmobiles in the parking lot. I haven't been in winter since the numbers have been reduced.


The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan
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