Fishing Cone Geyser by Robby Edwards
Yellowstone National Park, July 2006
"Mountain men told of a geyser on the shore of a high alpine lake where one could catch a trout, swing the pole around, dip it into the boiling pool, and cook the fish without taking it off the line. This cooking-on-the-hook feat at Fishing Cone became famous after it was described by a member of the 1870 Washburn Expedition. Visitors often dressed in a cook’s hat and apron to have their picture taken at the "Chowder Pot" or the "Fish Pot." Anglers often injured themselves while straddling the boiling water, and their feet damaged the geyser’s cone. Fishing is no longer allowed from Fishing Cone." —from the National Park Service, Yellowstone website
Fishing cone used to be a geyser which erupted to a height of about 40 feet, but as the water level in Lake Yellowstone has risen in recent years inundating this thermal feature with colder water, it has turned into a hot spring. It is an interesting reminder of both the ever changing nature of Yellowstone’s thermal features and the history of this amazing place.