YELLOWSTONE LAKE

Yellowstone Lake (elevation 2,357 meters), one of the world's largest mountain lakes is traversed from the south to the north by the Yellowstone River. It measures 32 km in its longest length, 22.5 kilometers in its widest width. With 176 kilometers of banks, it covers a total area of 360 km ². Its maximum depth is 91 meters in West Thumb Bay. This fish lake, surrounded by high mountains, is the refuge of countless waterfowl.

It is frozen almost half of the year (from late December or early January to late May or early July), with ice thicknesses ranging from a few centimeters to more than 60 centimeters. Situated at an altitude of 2 ¾ 300 meters, the lake remains cold all year long; its average temperature is 5 ° C, the upper layer rarely exceeding 19 ° C. This lake has the largest population of North American 'ferocious trout'. Lake trout, an exotic species that is illegally introduced, threatens its existence. In the larger part there are three small islands: Frank Island, Dot Island and Stevenson Island. From West Thumb, following the north shore, the road leads to Lake (38 km). Lake Yellowstone Hotel dominates the lake and offers magnificent views of the Absaroka Range.

On the left, a 2.4 km road rises to Natural Bridge, a rock arch created by erosion.