Photograph by S.R. Brantley on 20 May 2002
Photograph by S.R. Brantley on 20 May 2002
Only a few kilometers from Mammoth, this is one of the most accessible and widely seen exposures of the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff, which erupted during the first volcanic cycle of Yellowstone about 2.1 million years ago.
This exposure of the Huckleberry Tuff is located about 20 km north from the rim of the caldera that formed as a consequence of its eruption. The Huckleberry Ridge Tuff is also found on top of Mount Everts, the broad peak 6 km in the distance. Based on the distribution of the tuff, scientists infer a broad river valley probably existed between here and Mount Everts and the source of the eruption. The tuff filled or partly buried the valley.