The summer season has officially begun! In Yellowstone that means there are more than 15 hours of light each day to explore the park’s many wonders. Take a hike out on more than 1,000 miles of trails. Tour geyser basins on a bluebird afternoon. Get up at first light to view wildlife in the Lamar Valley. From sunrise to sunset, summer in Yellowstone offers an abundance of opportunities to experience the world’s first national park in all its splendor.

Here are some of our favorite images from recent summer seasons in Yellowstone.

Sunrise color on the Yellowstone River at the north end of Hayden Valley.

 

The view from the Brink of the Lower Falls at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Visit this overlook in the middle of the day on a sunny day and you will likely be rewarded with a rainbow, or even two!

 

Sunset at Heart Spring with Lion Geyser in the background in the park’s Upper Geyser Basin.

 

Take a ride over Dunraven Pass in July and August and you’ll find fields of daisies and fantastic views from the Washburn Range of the valleys below.

 

Afternoon light on Golden Gate framed nicely by a rainbow.

 

Grand Pristmatic Spring as seen from the new overlook trail. Well worth the 1.2-mile round-trip hike!

 

Bison herd washed over with late afternoon light in Lamar Valley.

 

YF / Matt Ludin
Beehive Geyser eruption on a bluebird day at the park’s Upper Geyser Basin.

 

In summer, bull elk antlers are covered with a thick, fuzzy coating referred to as “velvet.” They will shed this covering in late summer in time for the fall rut season.

 

You never know what you might see on a sunset stroll around the boardwalks of the Upper Geyser Basin. Here we were pleasantly surprised by a Sawmill Geyser eruption.

There is no better consistent sunrise and sunset color and reflections in the park than at Yellowstone Lake. You won’t regret waking up early or staying out late to see the dramatic scene unfold before you.