We stayed two nights within easy walking distance to Yellowstone lake. This allowed two mornings to capture sunrises over the lake’s eastern sky. The haze due to distant forest fires and another east of the lake allowed the sun to explode with reddish hues.
Distant smoke
Yellowstone River
Yellowstone Lake is the largest natural high-elevation lake in the North America. The waters consist of 132 square miles of surface area and 141 miles of shoreline. This is not a small body of water. The depths are around 400 feet.
Yellowstone is famous for its geysers and hot springs. There is evidence of underwater geysers and hot springs too. Despite the hot springs the lake is frozen over half of the year.
The Yellowstone River is a part of the lake obviously. This water exits the lake forming the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. (A few photos of the canyon were in the #6 entry.) This river is the longest undammed river in the lower 48 states as well. 
Smoke from closest fire
Laurie and I were up early the first morning to hike to the lake. Unfortunately, she froze out since the temperatures had reached the upper thirty degree mark overnight. She elected to head back to the lodge when she saw a small fox-like mammal in her terms. This was a pine marten. (We would see one at the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone the next day.)
I explored the shores and nearby forests anxious to what was around the next bend. Mergansers and gulls and even pelicans were viewed around these waters. Much to soon, I had to exit this exploration to visit other unique sites. 
The lake is having an issue to deal with. The native specie of trout is called the Cutthroat Trout. It is in decline due to the introduction of the Lake Trout. The deeper water Lake Trout feeds on the young Cutthroat Trout of the shallower water. The Cutthroat doesn’t return the favor and the results are obvious. The park service has been hiring commercial fishermen with special nets to remove as many lake trout as they can catch. 
Larry A. Smail's Blog 
Leave a Reply