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A lone bison grazes on a hillside overlooking the sweeping Hayden Valley in Yellowstone National Park, with the Yellowstone River meandering through lush meadows and distant mountain ranges bathed in a warm pink-hued sunset sky.

Idaho, Montana, Wyoming · Yellowstone National Park

Old Faithful & the Upper Geyser Basin

The densest concentration of geysers on Earth, and the part of Yellowstone most people picture. Old Faithful erupts on a roughly 90-minute schedule you can plan a morning around, and the boardwalks beyond it thread past Castle, Grand, and Riverside through the Upper Geyser Basin. Old Faithful Inn anchors the village — book it a year out — and the whole area sits on the west side of the lower loop, an easy first or last stop from the West Entrance.

A lone bison grazes on a hillside overlooking the sweeping · near Yellowstone National Park

Overview

Old Faithful & the Upper Geyser Basin — Yellowstone

The densest concentration of geysers on Earth, and the part of Yellowstone most people picture. Old Faithful erupts on a roughly 90-minute schedule you can plan a morning around, and the boardwalks beyond it thread past Castle, Grand, and Riverside through the Upper Geyser Basin. Old Faithful Inn anchors the village — book it a year out — and the whole area sits on the west side of the lower loop, an easy first or last stop from the West Entrance.

Headline Hikes

Top trails in Yellowstone

  1. A steaming turquoise hot spring pool along the shore of Yellowstone Lake, viewed from a wooden boardwalk that curves around its edge.

    Mystic Falls, Fairy Creek and Little Firehole Loop

    3.6 mi 636 ft gain 1.7 hr

    Moderate Loop Kid friendly

    A 3.6-mile moderate loop near Old Faithful that climbs to Mystic Falls and a ridge overlooking the Upper Geyser Basin steaming below — a strong half-day choice that combines a waterfall, forest, and a basin overview in one walk. The 636 feet of climbing keeps it honest without being punishing. Good for hikers who've already seen the Old Faithful boardwalks and want to get above the crowds for a wider perspective.

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  2. A wide open meadow in Yellowstone National Park with multiple columns of white geothermal steam rising from hydrothermal features along the tree line, viewed…

    Upper Geyser Basin

    3.2 mi 101 ft gain 1.0 hr

    Easy Loop Kid friendly

    An easy 3.2-mile loop through the Upper Geyser Basin, which holds Old Faithful and the densest concentration of geysers in the world — the boardwalks here let you walk among dozens of active springs and geysers beyond the famous one everyone gathers for. The flat, stroller-friendly route makes it accessible to almost any visitor with the time to wander. Choose this when you want to see far more than Old Faithful's single eruption and explore the whole geyser field at your own pace.

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  3. A wide open meadow in Yellowstone National Park with multiple columns of white geothermal steam rising from hydrothermal features along the tree line, viewed…

    Upper Geyser Basin and Old Faithful Observation Point Loop

    4.9 mi 357 ft gain 1.8 hr

    Moderate Loop Kid friendly

    A 4.9-mile moderate loop that walks the Upper Geyser Basin and climbs to Observation Point, the perch that looks straight down on Old Faithful as it erupts — the rare angle where you watch the geyser from above rather than from the packed benches. The 357-foot climb is the price for getting above the crowd. Pick this over the flat basin loop if you want the elevated view of the eruption and a fuller tour of the world's densest geyser field in one outing.

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Trail descriptions are field-tested summaries; verify current conditions and closures with NPS before hiking.

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