A tourist has sparked outrage after wandering off a trail at Yellowstone National Park and trampling over a hot spring’s delicate eco system.
The visitor ventured off designated boardwalks to retrieve baseball caps blown onto the iconic bacterial mats near the Grand Prismatic Spring.
Yellowstone’s bacterial mats are delicate ecosystems composed of thermophiles, or heat-loving microscopic organisms.
They flourish in the Montana park’s thermal basins, creating Yellowstone’s famously colorful landscapes.
Disturbing these mats, whether intentionally or accidentally, is classified as thermal trespassing.
Images of the the tourist’s reckless behavior on Monday quickly circulated on social media, where it was widely slammed.
It comes after a 17-year-old tourist was left with scalding burns after his foot went broke through the crust near a geyser at the park.
‘Darwinism at its best,’ one user said of the thermal mat trespasser.
A tourist wearing flip-flops steps onto a fragile bacterial mat at Yellowstone’s Grand Prismatic Spring to retrieve hats, sparking outrage among park visitors
The visitor had ventured off designated boardwalks to retrieve baseball caps blown onto the mats
‘They need to start hitting these stupid people where it hurts the most…their wallets. Minimum $5k fine and ban from all National Parks,’ said another.
‘Maybe they need to give a standard IQ test before you are allowed entry into the park,’ one person said.
‘Ban him from all National Parks for life. He can’t read or follow directions and obviously has no regard for the importance and fragility of the area,’ said yet another.
Discarded items such as hats, water bottles, and other personal belongings occasionally end up on these sensitive ecosystems due to wind gusts or carelessness.
Jeff Henry, a lifelong Yellowstone employee, emphasized that while the bacterial mats have a degree of resilience, repeated foot traffic could cause significant harm.
‘The impact of a large number of people stepping on the bacterial mats is obviously something that can’t be tolerated,’ he told Cowboy State Daily.
Yellowstone authorities urge visitors to respect and adhere to protective guidelines, emphasizing that the continued beauty and health of these natural wonders depend on responsible visitor behavior.
This latest case comes just days after a 17-year-old tourist suffered ‘significant thermal burns’ near Yellowstone National Park’s Lone Star Geyser.
He may have meant well – but Yellowstone visitors say this rule-breaking hat retriever endangered one of the park’s most stunning natural features
Park authorities emphasize that Yellowstone’s unique thermal features require visitor cooperation to remain pristine
Social media outrage exploded after images surfaced of a visitor disregarding Yellowstone’s rules and stepping onto fragile bacterial mats
According to park officials, the teen was hiking Monday morning in the Lone Star Geyser Basin, about three miles southeast of Old Faithful, when his foot broke through the thin crust surrounding a thermal area.
His foot plunged into scalding water, which can reach temperatures between 160 and 200 degrees, causing severe burns to his foot and ankle.
And celebrities aren’t exempt from the public scrutiny. Last year, James Bond star Pierce Brosnan pleaded guilty to illegally hiking into a protected thermal area at Yellowstone National Park and agreed to pay a $1,500 fine.
The actor initially pleaded not guilty after he was cited for venturing off-trail near the park’s Mammoth Terraces in November 2023.
According to court documents filed last March, Brosnan admitted to one of two charges for straying into the restricted hot spring zone to get a closer look at the thermals.
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