Monument Geyser Basin
Monument Geyser Basin is a thermal basin in the Gallatin County part of Yellowstone, two miles from West Yellowstone by the record, and within half a mile of the Grand Loop Road. The recorded reading is near boiling. Park land, open access. Look, do not touch.
The Grand Loop Road sits four tenths of a mile out, and the basin is in the low seventy-three hundreds for elevation. The climate record gives about ten feet of snow a year and a degree or so over freezing on the yearly average. Rain and melt are moderate. Designated national park, run by the Park Service.
The climate entry favors December through February, and that hinges on the Grand Loop Road being open, which is the park's call. Indian Creek Campground, fourteen miles away, is the listed campground. Scalding water. Stand well back, on ground that holds. The water chemistry on file comes from an October 2007 sample. Nothing on the record about a fee.
A USGS site number is attached to the basin, with a water sample from October 2007 on file. That sample measured a pH a shade under neutral, and the minerals listed are sodium, calcium, magnesium, chloride and sulfate.
Aircraft with laser scanners measured this ground to within inches. The scan strips out trees and buildings, leaving the bare shape of the land around Monument Geyser Basin.
Drag the handle to compare the two views. The orange dot marks the spring, in a frame about three quarters of a mile wide.
- Setting
- Gentle slope
- The ground tilts gently up to the west.
- Highest ground nearby
- 181 ft above the spring
- Within a quarter mile, to the west
A slice through the ground from southwest to northeast, about 0.6 miles end to end.
Elevation data: USGS 3D Elevation Program. Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map. Public domain.
That's about twice the US average of 65. It's higher than at 78% of the springs on this site.
Heat flow measures the warmth working its way up through the ground from deep inside the earth. Where it runs high, rain and snowmelt that seep down through cracks in the rock come back up hot.
See every spring on the geothermal heat map →
Heat flow estimate: Stanford Thermal Earth Model (Aljubran & Horne, 2024), CC BY 4.0.
The water at Monument Geyser Basin is slightly acidic (pH 6.7). It is notably rich in sodium (supports circulation and skin hydration) and chloride (natural antiseptic with skin health benefits).
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Overview Located about eight miles (13 km) south of Mammoth Hot Springs on the road to Norris, Indian Creek Campground—elevation 7,300 feet (2225 m)—sits near the base of the Gallatin Mountains and offers breathtaking views of Electric Peak. The area offers easy access to fishing and hiking. The campground is away from the main road and provides a quieter, more primitive, experience than many other locations. For reservations at the campgrounds managed by Yellowstone National Park Lodges (Fi...
Monument Geyser Basin sits at 7,320 feet above sea level, way above the mile-high mark. You may not feel the altitude strongly, but hot water still dehydrates you faster at elevation. UV is about 29% stronger than at sea level, so bring sunscreen and drink more water than you normally would.
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Monument Geyser Basin is road-accessible, so you can bring more gear. The water is dangerously hot, so bring water shoes and test pools carefully. Cold air temperatures make a changing robe or warm layers essential.
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Springs Near Monument Geyser Basin
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